A year in the life of Harry Potter
by Fungi Fulton
Summary: Harry gets his Hogwarts letter and when he's told that it's true that he's a wizard,he runs away and ends up in the streets of London.Though he soon finds friends he is captured by the police and given to whom but Severus Snape, our beloved Potion Master.
1. July, 28

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 1: July, 28

_Click! Click! Click!_

"Shift your head a bit more to the left. A bit more. Yes, perfect, Harry, perfect!"

_Click, click, click, click!_

"And now smile. Act as if you've just been told the most funniest joke ever, Harry! Yes! This is beyond perfect!"

_Click! Click! Click! Click! Click!_

"We're finished for today," an elderly man who had spoken before said, standing up. He put his camera with which he had token photos on a table. "Harry, one day you'll get famous. Your face will be on all the front pages of the fashion magazines all over England! What am I talking about? All over the world!"

"Ted, you're exaggerating," Harry Potter grinned, though the thought of it didn't scare him.

Half a year ago Ted Macintosh, the owner of _Ted's Model Agency_, had seen him on the streets walking with his relatives to the shopping mall. He had approached them and talked with Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia Dursley about Harry trying out modeling. At first they hadn't been too fond of the idea as they hadn't liked Harry that much. However, soon their nephew was in numerous children fashion magazines, advertising the newest clothes, whether it was shorts and shirts for the summer, jackets and trousers for the winter, or swimming accessories. Of course the modeling job brought in money, and that made Vernon and Petunia like their nephew even more.

"C'mon, boy," Vernon called from the other end of the room. "You still have to help Dudley with his maths equations."

Upon the new found love of his relatives Harry, who was quite intelligent, had offered to help his cousin with the school work.

"See ya later, Ted!" Harry called, putting a t-shirt over his naked chest. They had just made some pictures for Debenhams advertising some of the shorts they'd sell this summer for boys. Although Harry was only ten years old he looked already like thirteen. He was tall for his age, had a six-pack and an overall well-built body. Since he started modeling he'd started to work out a bit in his free time. When he'd been younger Harry had to do all sorts of chores as punishment, now he did them to keep fit.

"Harry!" three nine-year-old girls screamed as Vernon and Harry exited _Ted's Model Agency_. "HARRY!"

Not only did modeling bring money, but also younger and sometimes also older girls who wanted to go out with him. At the moment he had a girlfriend, Josy, who was probably the best-looking girl in the whole school. She was eleven and in his class. All the other boys were jealous of him for getting her.

"Ignore them, Harry," Vernon hissed, unlocking the car door.

"Harry! Harry! Please, smile for us!" the girls continued to scream.

Harry turned around to them and grinned his beloved grin. Then he got into the car and his uncle drove away.

Fifteen minutes later they were at #4 Privet Drive, the house Harry lived in with his relatives.

"Any other appointments?" Harry asked as they walked up to the front door. He was exhausted.

"No, not that I know," Vernon answered, opening the door.

"Hello, sweetheart," Petunia said. She kissed Vernon on the cheek. "How was the photographing?"

"Same as always," Harry shrugged. "Can't complain." He started walking up the staircase.

"Oh, I nearly forgot. A reporter called. He'd like to interview you today, Harry. Apparently you're one of the most famous boy models in Surrey," his aunt called after him.

"Tell him to come up to my room when he arrives," Harry replied. "I'll just take a shower and get changed."

An hour later Harry sat at his desk, a box of Marco's Luxury Cream Wafers in his hand. Opposite him on his bed sat the reporter that had called. He reminded Harry a bit of Sherlock Holmes, the famous detective.

"Want one?" he asked, holding the box towards the reporter who shook his head. Harry shrugged, took one and sucked on it, inhaling the taste of coffee that he loved so much.

"So, Harry - if I can call you that," the man began.

"Sure. Go on."

"I'm Mr. Sour, though I'm nothing my surname should suggest." He smiled warmly. "You probably heard of the magazine _Fashion for Youth_?"

"Yeah, sure. Been in there once or twice."

"Well, I'm working for _Fashion for Youth_, Harry, and they want to publish an article about two child models - a boy and a girl. When I asked at _Ted's Model Agency_ if they could tell me a few names, they suggested you and Phoebe Harrington."

"Phoebe is nice. I worked with her a few times."

"You wouldn't mind answering a few questions the, would you?"

"Nope. Just ask me and I answer as honest as I can."

"OK, let's begin," Mr. Sour said. "How much did modeling change your life?"

"More than you can imagine," Harry answered instantly, taking another cream wafer. "Everyone likes me, I have much more money than before, I'm well known now. Ted says I might even be world-famous when I'm older."

"You'd like that?"

"Who wouldn't?"

"Third question. If you could choose of any supernatural power - controlling the elements for example - which would you choose?"

Harry thought, sucking on a wafer. He'd never wasted a thought about something like this. However, he knew which supernatural power he'd love to have. He got up from his chair, walked to the door and looked out, making sure that none of his relatives were there. Then he walked back to his desk and sat down again before he answered.

"I'd love to be a wizard," he said in a low voice.

Mr. Sour wrote it down. "So, who is your idol?"

"Sherlock Holmes. As you see here " - Harry pointed at a shelf above his bed - "I have the entire series of his books. The way he solves all sorts of crimes just fascinates me. All about him fascinates me to say the truth."

"Well, then. Back to modeling. Do you enjoy it?"

"As much as anyone could. It's a fun thing to do."

"_Fashion for Youth_ asked me to ask you some questions about your background, Harry," Mr. Sour continued. "You don't mind me asking, do you?"

"Of course not," Harry answered. However, he thought, if you go too far you won't find me answering you another question ever again.

"No one knows much of your background, so it's quite an interesting thing. You live with your uncle and aunt, right?"

"Right," Harry answered, fearing where this would go to. He liked Mr. Sour, and it'd be great if they could have some more interviews in the future, but only if he didn't ask the question a lot of reporters had made the mistake to ask.

"Harry, do you know who your parents are?"

He did it. He asked the one question he was not meant to ask.

"Out," Harry hissed, standing up.

"But -"

"OUT!" Harry screamed, pointing at the door.

"Is everything alright?" Petunia asked worriedly, popping her head in. "He didn't asked _the question_, did he?"

"What question?" Mr. sour asked irritated.

Harry nodded to his aunt, his teeth gritted, glaring at Mr. Sour sourly. He sat down again and took another wafer to keep his emotions under control.

"I think you'd better leave," his aunt said to the reporter, ushering him out. She closed the door.

Harry stood up and threw himself onto his bed. He hated his parents. They left him at this house of hatred. Nine years of torture had been more than enough. However, the last half a year had been different. His relatives started to love him. _But only because of the money he was making._

"Why?" Harry screamed into his pillow. "Why? Why did they have to leave me? What did I ever do to them?"

Everyone always thought that Harry had the happiest life a child could hope to have. He had money. He was well known if not yet famous. He had more than enough girls who wanted him.

It was the opposite. He hated his life. All the people only liked him because of his money. Even Josy was only going out with him to make her friends and all the other boys jealous. Harry didn't have anything against that - at least not as long as things wouldn't get serious, like kissing or something like that, although she'd already tried doing that.

The one thing every child in his neighborhood had that he didn't have was loving parents. Harry would give his chance of being a world-famous model when he'd be older away to just spent one day with his parents. But no, they had to leave him here.

Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had told him all the time about how bad his parents were, and how lucky he was to be with them now. Apparently they were life-long in jail for killing someone. Harry didn't care though. They were his parents and that was the only thing that counted.

Before he knew it Harry had fallen asleep because of the tiredness the day had brought.


	2. July, 29

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 2: July, 29

Harry did not get up until after lunch. His aunt had gone up to his room and asked if he is okay, but he'd told her, a bit aggressively, that he wasn't in the mood to talk. So, after hours and hours of sleep, two packets of wafers and a long shower the young boy made his way downstairs into the living room where his relatives sat, watching TV.

"Do you want something to eat?" Petunia asked, already standing up.

"No, I'm alright," Harry muttered, sitting down next to Dudley who stared at the television screen as if in trance, stuffing potato crisps down his throat. He took one and bit into it, the crisp crushing between his teeth.

"Harry," Vernon warned, looking away from the TV. "You know what Ted said. Nothing that contains too much calories."

"I know, I know," Harry said in a low voice, staring up at the ceiling, annoyed. For the last half a year he had gotten more food, but none of the fatty luxuries Dudley had grown up with. The only reason he was allowed to eat packets and packets of wafers was because, at the beginning, he'd said he'd tell someone that they made him do modeling against his will and about what they'd done to him before. After a bit of time and after getting to know Ted and Phoebe and some other models, he started to enjoy it though. However, he made sure that he still got enough wafers to last him a life time.

"Anyway," his uncle changed the subject, taking the TV control and turning the television off.

"I was watching that!" Dudley exclaimed, his mouth full of crisps. His father gave him a warning look and he shut up, still sulking.

"The day after tomorrow is your birthday," Petunia finished where Vernon had stopped.

"Oh, really?" Harry said, his voice breaking with sarcasm.

Vernon gritted his teeth and glared at his nephew. He hated him no matter how much money he brought in, but he needed to be nice to the boy in order to make him feel welcomed, to make him feel as if he did what he did for a good cause. The packets of wafers he ate sometimes cost more than he brought in with his modeling, but it was necessary to give them to him.

"Yes," Vernon said, forcing a fake smile. "But I think we should leave the subject for now."

He'd known it. It would be another year without presents for him. Harry wondered if he'd ever get used to the fact that watching his whale of a cousin unwrap his presents was present enough for him.

* * *

"Harry!" Petunia called upstairs from the entrance hall. "Your girlfriend is here! She wants to talk to you."

Harry sighed heavily and got up from his bed. Nothing that had happened so far that day had lifted his bad mood, and the last thing he wanted to do was talk with Josy.

"Hi, darling," Josy said, flying into Harry's room as if she never had heard of the phrase "knock on the door before you enter". She flung her handbag onto his bed and sat down on it. She looked around, looking for something. Then her eyes brightened. "Oh!" she exclaimed as she jumped up, leaped to the desk and took a still closed packet of wafers, ripped it open and took three of the rolls. "To get me calmed down, you see," she said happily. It was clear that she was hyper.

"What are you doing here?" Harry grunted, sitting down on his desk and looking with sad eyes at the wafers in Josy's hand, hold by fingers which nails were neatly painted in a bright pink color. He hated sharing them with people he didn't ask if they wanted one, especially if they had opened a brand new packet without asking.

"Oh, are you not happy to see me?" Josy asked, curling her bottom lip which was covered in rosa lip gloss downwards to show that she wasn't happy at his reaction to her surprise visit.

"What do you want?" he asked, trying to hold himself from shouting at her.

She drew in breath as if she was preparing to dive into a deep pool. "My friends grow tired," Josy suddenly said, turning into the chatterbox she usually was in school. She looked at her fingernails, inspecting them carefully one by one. "They want us to move on, Harry. Holding hands and so isn't enough anymore. They need to get what they want, which is kissing and so on."

"I told you from the day I gave in to your request to be your boyfriend that I don't want anything serious!" Harry exclaimed.

"Times change," Josy said carelessly, standing up. She looked at the bookshelf above the bed, her fingers moving from one book back to the other, acting as if she was reading the titles. Josy drew a random book out and opened it somewhere in the middle, reading the first sentence she saw.

"_"I can see that you are not satisfied."_"

Harry gave her an irritated look. "What?!"

Josy let the book fall down on the bed and moved to Harry. "The meaning of the sentence is that you know I'm not satisfied with what you give me," she purred, stepping towards him.

Harry had had enough time to read the title of the book, and he did not have any idea what that sentence from _The Return of Sherlock Holmes : Black Peter_ had to do with their love life.

Josy leaned forward, gripping his wrists tight. "Kiss me," she whispered.

Harry gave her a bewildered look.

"Piss off!" he yelled, pushing her away from him.

"You know what?" Josy screamed, taking her handbag off his bed. "You're dumped. All the boys in the school would give their _lives_ to go out with me!"

"Fine! I'd have left you anyway," Harry shouted at her.

"We'll see how fast you come crawling back to me," she sneered, slamming the door behind her.

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	3. July, 30

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 3: July, 30

Like the day before Harry spent many hours in bed. His aunt brought him breakfast but he didn't eat it. When he finally did go downstairs he could hear his uncle and aunt talk in the kitchen. He crept to the half-open kitchen door in order to eavesdrop to their conversation.

"...I told you before!" he heard his uncle say. "We don't have the money!"

"He's never had a proper present since he set foot into this house for god's sake!" Petunia yelled. "He didn't have a childhood! All he ever had was a life as a slave!"

"So you say it's my fault that his parents -"

_That my parents what?_ Harry thought bitterly. _That they killed someone?_

"Vernon, I'd never say such a thing. You know that."

"Then you know what to do."

"I can't! It'd be barbaric to do such a thing!"

_To do what?_

"He might bring money into the house, but do you want Dudley to suffer from it?"

_To suffer from what?_

"He'd never -"

"How do you know?" Harry's uncle cut her short. "How do you know that over the long term he won't be suffering from it?"

"Vernon, don't be ridiculous," Petunia told him.

"Ridiculous? Who is here ridiculous?" Vernon roared angrily, and Harry jumped in fright. "That boy has been high on the clouds on my costs, Petunia. MY COSTS!"

"He's brought in money, you know."

"Yeah, how much? Fifty pounds for every photo that is published? And how many photos were published? Fifty, Petunia. Fifty photos. That makes £250. How much did all these wafers he's eating cost? More, lots more. I'm only glad Ted forbid him to eat anything too fatty, otherwise he'd demand to get the same luxuries our Dudley is getting."

"Now, now. You're seeing everything too serious. He's nothing more than a little boy."

Harry didn't understand the world anymore. His aunt standing up for him?

"TOO SERIOUS? WHO IS WORKING ALL DAY TO PAY FOR FOOD, CLOTHING AND EVERYTHING ELSE? YOU OR ME?"

"Vernon, calm down."

"CALM DOWN???"

There was a long silence. Then - sobs. Harry hardly had enough time to hide in the cupboard under the stairs before his uncle stormed out of the kitchen.

* * *

What had the argument been about?, Harry wondered, kicking a stone out of his way. He'd gone outside after he'd made sure that Uncle Vernon had not been anywhere near the house. He remembered hearing a faint noise of a car starting, so his uncle had probably driven to the pub.

It still shocked him that his aunt had stood up for him. It was true that before he'd started taking up modeling and before they had suddenly started to like him she'd sometimes given him a scrap or two from the leftovers from the meals or let him spend an extra few minutes in the bathroom, but standing up against her own husband for whatever their argument had been about?

"Hey, you!" Harry turned around. A stocky fifteen-year-old boy ran towards him. "Aren't you that boy Harry Potter? The one that broke my sister's heart?"

Harry's heart sank. He'd totally forgotten about Josy's older brother. He gulped.

"So you're him, aren't ya?" the other boy continued, closing in on him. "You know, you made my sis cry. I hate it when people make my sis cry cause it makes her beautiful face look ugly."

"Can't we discuss this somewhere else?" Harry asked, trying to stay calm.

"_DISCUSS_ THIS?" the older boy bellowed, his fist flying through the air.

Harry did not know how to describe what happened next, at least not at that time. Instead of being punched by Josy's brother he [_Josy's brother_] suddenly flew backwards on top of a car which had been driving down the road. It came to a sudden halt, the boy falling onto the cemented road, unconscious.

Harry stumbled backwards, shocked. What had happened? What had he done? Before he knew it he'd run back to Privet Drive.


	4. July, 31

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 4: July, 31

"Harry Birthday!" Dudley yelled, jumping upon Harry's bed. "Get it? Get it? _Harry _Birthday! Not _Happy_ Birthday! Get it?"

"Yeah, yeah," Harry grunted, trying to sit up. But the weight of his cousin kept him down. "Dudley - get off!"

"Sorry." Dudley got off Harry's bed, looking upset.

"It's OK," Harry sighed. He knew how emotional and sensitive his cousin was at times. "What's there for breakfast?" He got out of bed, grabbed a wafer and started going downstairs.

"Pancakes, bacon and fried eggs," Dudley grinned, rubbing his belly. He followed Harry.

"What are we gonna do today?"

"Dunno." His smile disappeared. "Well, it's your choice."

"For the first time," Harry smiled. This was the first time his relatives celebrated his birthday. He could choose where they'd spend the day.

"Happy Birthday," Petunia and Vernon said as the two boys entered the kitchen. "Your presents are over there," Harry's aunt said, pointing at the kitchen table, while turning a pancake around in the frying pan.

Harry eye's grew big. There had to be at least fifteen presents. That was more than he'd ever hoped to get, especially after the argument yesterday.

"Ah, the mail is there," Uncle Vernon said, looking up from his newspaper. "Dudley, would you get it?"

"Do I have to?" Dudley moaned, stuffing his mouth full with bacon.

"I get it," Harry said, walking out of the kitchen again. The mail was lying by the front door. He grabbed it and looked through it. A postcard from Uncle Vernon's sister Marge. The water bill. Phone bill. Heat bill. A letter for a Mr. Harry Potter. - Wait, _he_ was Mr. Harry Potter! Normally his letters were addressed to Harry Potter, but never before to _Mr._ Harry Potter. Not even the letters he got from Ted.

"Ya got a letter?" Vernon asked trying not to sound too interested, taking the mail from his nephew. "_Again_? These girls must really love you."

Harry grunted as he sat down. He put the letter into his pyjama trouser. It looked rather formal, and he thought it'd be better opening it when he was on his own.

"So, what do you want to do today, darling?" Petunia asked, putting a plate full of pancakes in front of him.

"Dunno." Harry shrugged. "What if we don't do anything?"

"But it's your birthday!" Vernon exclaimed, somehow relieved at not having to spent any more money on his god-for-saken nephew. "And you haven't even opened a single present you got!"

"I'll do it later," Harry said pushing his plate away, standing up. "I'm not very hungry."

Harry went back to his bedroom, got dressed and walked back downstairs.

"See ya later!" he yelled opening the front door. "I'll be back in about 'n hour!"

Once outside Harry made his way to the nearby park. It took about fifteen minutes to walk there. About that time in the morning there shouldn't be anyone there. As Harry reached it he saw no one. He walked over to the swings and sat down on one, pulling a wafer out of his trouser pocket. He ate it before he looked at the letter. Now it looked even more formal to him. The envelope was sealed shut with candle wax, like in the middle ages. The wax had a weird crest-like symbol on it. In the middle was a 'H', and around it was, like it seemed, a snake, a badger, a lion and a hawk. Munching another wafer Harry broke the seal and opened the envelope, not knowing what to expect to be in there.

It was a letter. What else should it have been? The envelope had been too thin to be some kind of a parcel.

Harry read through the letter once. Twice. Thrice. Then he fell down from the swings, his eyes still fixed on the letter.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_I am happy to tell you that you are accepted to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed in this letter is a list of the things you will need. The Hogwarts Express which will bring you and the other students to Hogwarts will departure on 1st September at 11:00 a.m sharp on Platform 9 3/4._

There was more written, but Harry was unable to read the rest. These three sentences didn't make any sense to him. School of Witchcraft and Wizardry? Hogwarts Express? Was this some kind of joke? Or a misunderstanding? However, on the envelope it clearly said _Mr. Harry Potter, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey_. It couldn't be a misunderstanding. Additionally, the letter didn't sound much like a joke.

Harry decided to go back home and ask his relatives. Maybe they knew something about it.

* * *

"Well..." Vernon stammered, putting his newspaper down, looking at the letter rather uncomfortably. Then his eyes slowly wandered to his wife.

"Well...." she said, looking at her husband. "There is something we have to tell you..."

"Don't say this isn't fake," Harry groaned.

"It - you - your parents - "

"What Vernon is trying to say is," Petunia said, continuing in a whisper," that you are a _you-know-what._"

"A _you-know-what_?" Harry questioned irritated.

"Yeah, a _you-know-what_," Vernon said, making an annoyed hand movement to try and make him understand.

"Oh - a _you-know-what_!" Harry said, finally understanding. "Wait - a _you-know-what_? I'm a _magic_?" All these years Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia had used the phrase _you-know-what_ when they'd talked about magic.

"Wizard," Petunia mouthed. "A wizard."

"Ah, wizard. - Wizard?!" Harry exclaimed.


	5. August, 1

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 5: August, 1

Harry looked at his watch. Minutes past midnight. His mind was too full of questions to be able to settle down to sleep. He'd spent the rest of his birthday locked up in his bedroom, refusing to come out, refusing to eat or drink, refusing to open his presents. The whole thing about him being a wizard had upset him too much. He'd been told reluctantly by his relatives the truth about him being here. The truth about his parents. They were not life-long in jail. They had sacrificed themselves for him. They'd been killed so that he could live. His scar was a left-over from that night, and not something they'd cut willingly into his forehead. It was something he didn't want to accept, knew that he would never ever accept the fact that his parents had been dead the whole time. He hadn't believed his aunt and uncle when they'd told him; he still didn't believe them now.

He couldn't stay anymore at the house of his uncle and aunt, and the house of hatred and lies. His whole life was built up of lies. Nothing more than lies.

Spontaneously he decided to run away. Go to a foreign country. Start a new life. Never come back again. As noiseless as he could Harry jumped out of bed, got dressed in enough clothes to last him a few days or so, and then grabbed a bag. First of all he collected all the money he could find in his bedroom. Then he took five packets of wafers, an extra jumper in case it got cold, a book to keep him entertained. In the end he had to leave three packets of wafers behind as they didn't fit into his backpack if he wanted to take some other food as well.

Once downstairs he went into the kitchen, took some apples and bananas. He was ready to go when he saw the still closed pile of presents he'd received. Wanting to have one time the feeling of being able to unwrap presents he but his bag down and knelt beside the pile. First of all he opened an envelope which lay on top of it. In it was a birthday card which was signed by Aunt Petunia and an extra twenty pounds. The other presents turned out be somewhat helpful as well. There was a map of London big enough to be a wallpaper. He stuffed that into his bag. A few boardgames which he left on the kitchen table for Dudley. The next presents were some more games and books. Weirdly all tags on the presents were signed by his aunt, though he didn't give it a second thought.

Finally, half an hour later, he was ready to leave Privet Drive forever. Lastly he wrote a note to his relatives.

_Dear Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon and Dudley,_

_I am grateful for all the things you did for me. You clothed me and fed me for years though you didn't had to. Thanks for doing so._

_Love, Harry_

Minutes later he closed the front door behind him, ready to start a new life.

* * *

"King's Cross?" the man who sold tickets at Little Whinging Train Station asked with raised eyebrows. Harry had token the first bus to get to that bus station which was on the other side of town.

"Yes," he replied. He'd had to wait for three hours at the bus station and another two in front of the train station waiting for it to be opened. In that time he thought about where to go, and now he was determined to go to London from where he could proceed not only by feet and train, but also by ship. And, as he'd already wasted so much time, he needed to get away as fast as possible.

"You on your own? No parents, guardians, older friends?"

"No. Only me."

"Well, what does a boy your age have to do in King's Cross at this hour on his own?"

"I am fifteen," Harry replied icily. He'd always been good at lying. He looked at the wall clock. The first train to King's Cross would be, he knew, leaving in seven minutes.

"Don't look like fifteen. More like twelve, thirteen at most."

"My parents were midgets, okay?"

"Calm down, calm down, eh!"

"Just give me my ticket."

"Here ya go. That'll be ten pounds fifty if ye have that much, eh!"

Angrily Harry shoved a ten-pound note and a fifty-pence coin into the man's hands and steamed off. If he didn't catch the first train his relatives might notice his absence and contact the police who then could easily find him lingering about the platforms. Luckily he just managed to jump into the last carriage before the doors closed and the train departed. He was on his way to his new life.


	6. August, 2

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 6: August, 2

As soon as he had reached King's Cross the day before he had started looking for somewhere to stay over night, but nothing had suited the amount of money he'd brought to last over a few days. He had, in total, £87 31p left, hardly enough to get him a room for two nights. Late evening he'd seen some boys his age and above lingering about in a narrow street. Tired, hungry and thirsty he'd walked over to them, not caring what they'd do to him.

"Hey," he'd said. "I'm Harry. Could it be that you're homeless?" From the ragged clothes and dirty faces of the youngsters he'd tried, like Sherlock Holmes, to deduct everything he could, leaving him with the idea of them being homeless.

"What d'ya wanna do 'bout it?" the tallest and oldest of them had asked him.

Harry gulped. "N-nothing. It's just that I don't have anywhere to stay, and I thought - I thought..."

"That we'd just take you in?" another one of the gang had sniggered.

"Leave him alone, Francis," a female voice had said, and, to Harry's surprise, a girl which was not yet a full grown woman had pushed her way through.

"I'm Abigail," she'd told him. "Where are your parents?"

"I don't have parents. I ran away from the people I lived with. And I've got money," Harry had added hastily. "Something about eighty pounds or so."

The oldest boy had stepped forward, smiling broadly, and patted Harry on the shoulder. "Welcome on board. I'm Henry. Come, let me introduce me to the others."

In total there were, except Harry, Henry, Francis and Abigail three others: twins called Emmett and Frederick and another girl called Miriam. The gang had, for the last three months, managed to keep themselves above the water after they'd run away from a children's home in Cambridge.

They'd spent the night near St. Paul's Cathedral. Harry was glad that he'd found them, for he knew that alone he'd never survived in London.

For breakfast they had the last fruits and wafers Harry had brought, along with some half-full water bottles Abigail had found.

"We need to save your money," Henry told Harry as he asked why they hadn't bought something with his money. "With the amount of money you brought we can easily buy food and water for two or maybe even three weeks. I'm just sorry about those wafers, for they were more than delicious."

"We'll explain to you how we get our money, Harry," Emmett said. "We always go in pairs to some place which works like a magnet." At Harry's confused face Frederick explained.

"What Emmett means -"

"Is that there is something ," his twin continued, "that attracts people, like the Tower of London."

"We go there," Frederick continued."And tell people that we accidentally spent all our money -"

"And don't have any to buy train tickets home or something like that," he finished. "Then we meet up again and see what we have. Sometimes we give in and let ourselves have the luxury of McDonald's or Subway or something like that for lunch or supper."

"But only seldom for we know that for every penny more we spend on food or drinks we have to beg more and more," Henry explained.

Because of his inexperience and because there were now an odd number of them, Harry went with Abigail and Henry, saying that he was their younger brother. In the morning before the mob of people arrived they washed themselves as good as they could at Trafalgar Square with water to look less like homeless people. Then, as soon as there were enough tourists, they went off to try and get money. Harry said that he'd lost his parents and that he needed money to buy a bus ticket to the hotel they were staying in, and it worked pretty well.

For lunch the gang met again.

"Seems that Harry is a gift from the gods," Henry smiled after he'd counted the money. "Our average intake raised in two pounds twenty-two pence."

"I insist upon buying you all something to eat at Subway," Harry said. Henry gave him a warning look, but, smiling, the young boy pulled a handful of vouchers out of his pocket. "Two for One. A man working at Subway gave them to me. How about that?"

"Okay," Henry gave in. "But this _stays_ an exception."


	7. August, 3

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 6: August, 3

Like the day before the gang washed themselves at Trafalgar Square, and then he went off with the twins to the Tower of London.

"Don't use the same excuse as yesterday and, if you should see any people you saw yesterday, try to stay clear of them," Emmett advised Harry.

"Why not?" Harry asked.

"Cause it'll seem suspicious if you loose your parents two days in a row," Frederick said.

At lunch time they met again, and the three of them walked to Waterloo Station where Henry, Abigail and Francis were already waiting. They gave the money to Henry who pocketed it.

"Where is Miriam?" Emmett asked.

"A woman recognized her," Francis said. "There was a policeman at Paddington Station where Miriam and I had gone to, and he took her with him to the nearest police station. I suspect she'll be brought back to the children's home."

"Did you - did you ever loose someone before?" Harry asked in a low voice. He hadn't wasted a single thought about what would happen if he got taken to a police station.

Henry nodded solemnly. "When we ran away we were eight in total, but two talked too much and got taken back by the police."

That afternoon none of them were in the mood for begging, fearing that they'd get taken back. They walked across London, following Henry who led them towards Madam Tussaud and then 221b Bakerstreet, but Harry didn't even look at what was supposed to once have been his hero's home. At evening they reached the Globe Theatre, and Henry led them along a narrow passageway to the back of a pub.

"Hey, Ernie," he called to a drunken, old-looking man who lay in a pile of rubbish.

"Henry, dear Henry," the man replied, staggering towards the gang, a half-ful bottle of beer in his hand. "My, my. You've found 'nother one I see."

"And lost Miriam," Abigail reported.

"That's a pity, is it not?"

"Got a few scraps of paper here?" Henry questioned.

"Depends what comes out for me," Ernie said, nearly falling over as he tripped over an empty can of baked beans.

Henry fished a coin out of his pocket and tossedit over to Ernie who caught it.

"Two pounds?" he asked, turning the coin to look at every single angle. "Not more?"

"Two pounds and not a penny more," Henry said firmly.

"Well, then. Let's see what I have." Ernie turned around on his heels, finding it hard to keep balance. He staggered back to where he'd lay on the floor and fell on his knees, rummaging through the piles of rubbish. Occasionally he threw some paper or card board over his shoulder, and Henry gestured to the twins to pick them up.

"All I can find," he said apologetically.

"This'll be enough," Henry said, throwing another fifty pence at him which he manged to catch.

"This'll be enough to buy me another bottle of beer," Ernie muttered as the gang left.

"Where are we going?" Harry asked as he tried to keep up with Henry who strode past the Globe Theatre and behind a nearby building. There was an empty bin, some left overs of wood and a lot of ash. The twins put the paper and cardboard down, and Abigail started to build up a pile in the bin. Henry pulled a packet of matches out of his pocket and set the pile on fire.

"We're doing this to show Miriam that we remember her," he said, taking a big cloth which lay beside the bin. He gave it to the twins who started to slowly wag the cloth above the fire, making middle-sized black clouds of smoke appear. They flew up in the cloudless sky.

"When we first ran away we swore that if anyone should be taken back the others would do this to show them how much their loss meant to us," Abigail whispered, trailing the smoke with her eyes. "Though we never hoped that it would ever come to that."


	8. August, 4

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 6: August, 4

In the middle of the night Harry woke up from the noise of coughing. As he sleepily looked up he made out Abigail who sat up straight, a tissue in front of her face, coughing vigorously. Next to her was Henry, whispering things to her.

"Go back to seep," Henry whispered as soon as he noticed that Harry was awake.

Suddenly Abigail held the tissue away from her mouth, and, in the moonshine, Harry could see something red against the white of the paper.

* * *

"Harry, you go with Francis," Henry decided after breakfast. "We've got an even number of us, so we don't need to go in trios anymore. And please, for god's sake be careful all of you."

"We will," the others replied as they went away.

"We're going to King's Cross," Francis said, leading Harry away from the others. "There are always enough people there to get a few bucks off."

"What if one of us gets... you know... taken away?" Harry asked.

"Then the other one will try and find the others as soon as possible," Francis answered. "Though I do not think anything's gonna happen."

"Just to be on the sure side, where are the others?"

"Henry and Abigail are at the London Eye and the twins are in Hyde Park. Know where that is?"

Harry shook his head. "Never have been in London before," he replied.

Francis shrugged. "Won't matter, I guess. Nothing's gonna happen, I tell ya."

"How do you know when the other one is taken away?" Harry continued asking.

"There'll be a huge crowd, a policeman or two. Can't really miss it. When Miriam was taken away there was an enormous crowd of people watching coz she kept biting and scratching the policeman. Finally two thugs hit her round the head and she lost consciousness. "

Harry swallowed hard. He hadn't expected police officers to be so brutal. In the Sherlock Holmes books they'd always seemed to be nice people to him, but only now he realized that the world wasn't only white and black but had many, many grey tones in it.

Soon enough they reached King's Cross. In one of the newsagent stores Harry saw the headline of _Fashion for Youth: _CHILD MODEL MISSING. There was a big picture of him on it. He was just glad that Francis hadn't seen it.

"Twelve o'clock at platform 9," Francis said before they parted.

"Where on platform 9?"

"At that wall-thingy between platform 9 and platform 10," Francis decided. "Know where it is?"

"I'll be able to find it," Harry said. He looked around once he was on his own. It was early in the morning - only gone 8 o'clock. Not that many people were about, but he knew that from the few days he'd already spent begging that soon there'd be a huge amount of people.

He started walking towards a man, tall in height and as thin as a stick. Only too late did he realise that that man was holding a copy of Fashion for Youth, reading the article concerning Harry's disappearance.

"Yes?" the man asked.

"I - I lost my purse," Harry stammered, hoping that the man would recognise him. "Now I-I don't have any money to buy a train ticket home..."

The man looked hard at him. Then he suddenly grabbed his arm.

"Aren't you Harry Potter?" he asked.

"N-no!" Harry exclaimed.

"Course you are! Don't lie!" Just then an officer walked past.

"Hey, officer!" the man called out. Harry tried running away but the man had his hand firm on his arm. "Here, I've caught that missing Harry Potter boy."

The officer came over, looking in interest at Harry. He pushed the hair covering up his forehead out of the way.

"'Tis is him alright," he said. "The scar's telling it all. Come with me now, boy. You're gonna have to answer some questions, and then there's already someone waiting for ya."

"Aunt Petunia?" Harry asked, irritated. After what happened he didn't think they'd want him back.

"No, no. You're relatives gave you up for adoption, and a man and a woman have been waiting for a boy like you a few months now," the officer laughed.

Harry thought about the money in his pocket and about Henry, Abigail, Francis, Emmett and Frederick. As soon as the man let go of him so that the police officer could take him, he set off. Minutes later he saw Francis. He ran towards him, seeing him shake his head in fright as the other boy saw the officer running behind Harry who, seconds later, ran into him. As the two boys fell on the ground Harry pushed the notes and a few coins which he had left over into Francis' jacket pocket.

The police officer grabbed Harry's shoulders and made him stand up.

"Now I got ya," he said. "And don't try to run off again!" He pushed him towards the nearest exit. A police car was waiting outside. Seconds later Harry sat in it, and the driver drove away. Harry saw at the entry to King's Cross station Francis standing there, watching him.

* * *

"Harry, please cooperate," a man said. He was the head of the children's home Petunia and Vernon had told to get Harry adopted.

"Why should I?"

"I know that the past few days haven't been easy, but if you don't answer my questions with honesty there's nothing I can do to help you."

"Who said I want your bloddy help?" Harry asked carelessly. As soon as he had arrived at the police station he'd been handed into the care of a woman who had made him wash himself thoroughly and who had made him get changed into some of the clothes his relatives had, along with his books, given the children's home.

"OK. Let's start again," the man said, ignoring him. "Why have you run away from your home?"

"Because I did."

"There has to be a reason for it, Harry. Children don't just run away from their home without any reason. Maybe a different approach will work," he muttered to himself. "OK. You've read the whole series of the Sherlock Holmes books, right? If you were Holmes, what would you do if you'd need to get information out of someone."

Harry shook his head, smiling. "I'm not stupid, Mr. Hatherley," he said. "I like the way you think. So I'll tell you what you want to hear. I ran away because I didn't like it anymore."

"With who did you hang around with?" Mr. Hatherley asked, surprised at the sudden change of mood.

"That is and will always be a secret." Harry gazed ruefully out of the window.

The man asked some more questions and Harry answered every single one with the utmost truth.

"Well, then," Mr. Hatherley said once they finished. " You want to meet your new guardians? Yes, of course you want to."

"No, not really," Harry muttered under his breath.

Mr. Hatherley gave him a warning look. "I act as if you have not said anything," he said.

The two left the police station. In Mr. Hatherley's car they drove out of London and about half an hour later they started driving up a hill*. Few minutes later they reached a house big enough to be a villa. Harry looked at it in awe. In front of it stood two people: a man and a woman.

"These are Mr. and Mrs. Snape," Mr. Hatherley said as he stopped the car.

"Hi Harry," Mrs. Snape said as Harry got out of the car. "We're glad to have you here."

"Hmmm," Harry muttered, not fighting as she embraced him.

"If you would sign this," Mr. Hatherley said to Mr. Snape, holding a piece of paper and a pen towards him.

"Of course," he said, taking both.

As soon as all was signed and Mr. Hatherley had driven away again, Mr. and Mrs. Snape went inside with Harry.

"Now we know that this isn't the most perfect thing that ever happened to you," she said. "We do not expect you to call us mum and dad, of course. It's enough if you call us by our first names. I'm Lucy and this is Severus." Her husband grunted in reply. "Our other child, Quentin, is at a friend's house at the moment and won't be back until evening, giving you enough time to settle down. You're bedroom is on the second floor, the fourth one on the right. Your things are there already. Oh, and there's a bathroom attached to it as well." Harry turned away. "And Harry? If there's anything you want to talk about, we'll always be there for you. I just wanted you to know that."

* * *

"What do you want?" Harry asked, hearing the door to his bedroom opening. He lay on his bed, his back facing the ceiling, his face hidden in a pillow.

"I wanted to talk," Severus said. "About today. And the last few days."

"There is nothing to talk about."

"There is more than enough to talk about, Harry, and you know it."

"No, there is not," Harry snarled into the pillow.

"This would be a lot easier if you'd be a bit more cooperative," Severus said, sitting down on Harry's bed. "You can't spend the rest of your life up here hiding in your bed."

"Can."

"Harry - why did you run off in the first place?"

"Cause I did."

"That isn't a proper answer."

"Is."

Severus sighed. "What's wrong? Don't you like it here?"

"I hate it here!" Harry screamed, pressing the pillow into his face as hard as he could, trying to suffocate himself.

"Give me that," Severus said, pulling the pillow away from Harry.

Harry sat up, glaring at Severus.

"I hope my mum comes and picks me up soon," he said icily.

Severus grabbed his shoulders. "Harry - your mum is not going to come back to get you."

"She is! She _will _come back!"

"She is dead, Harry. She has been for the last ten years."

"I - I don't believe you! It's not the truth. It is not -"

"Harry, it is the truth," Severus said, looking into Harry's eyes. Lily's eyes.

Harry pulled away, tears glistening in his eyes. "I wish - I wish I'd still be with my friends," he sobbed.

"On the streets throwing away your future?" Severus asked disbelievingly.

"I'm doing that right now," Harry huffed, standing up. He walked over to the bathroom door and locked himself in. Severus looked at it, sighed and walked out of Harry's bedroom, knowing that there was nothing he could do now.

* * *

That evening was, like the night before, cloudless. Harry spent the evening in his room. Lucy brought him dinner up but he didn't touch it. He stayed up late into the night. And as Harry looked out of his bedroom window he could see a few very small, black clouds of smoke fly into the sky, and he smiled ruefully, remembering what Abigail had told him days earlier, that this was how they showed him that they remembered him.

* * *

* That hill does not exist, and I only put it there for the purpose of Harry seeing the smoke.

A/N: I'm going on holiday tomorrow, and the next chapters will come next Monday


	9. August, 5

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 8: August, 5

In the morning, after Harry had got dressed, he started exploring the huge house. It had a ground floor, first floor, second floor and third floor, on each of them at least six rooms. Some of them were locked, some weren't. He found a library on the top floor, in total four bathrooms (one on every floor), an enormous attic and, next to the three bedrooms on the second floor, five guest bedrooms on the third floor. On his way back to his room (he nearly got lost), he met the child of the Snape family, Quentin.

"Hey, you're Harry, aren't you? I'm Quentin."

Harry jumped at the sudden noise and turned around on his heels. Instead of seeing a boy he saw, to his great surprise, a girl not younger than thirteen.

"Y-You're a girl," he stammered.

"Course I am," she laughed. She looked very similar to her father, with the exception of having her mother's nose: tall, slim, shoulder-long black hair, pale skin, and the same black eyes.

"But why don't you have a more... feminine name?"

Quentin laughed. "It's only a nickname, Harry. Daddy had the weird idea of me Quintella." She shivered. "Mummy says he'd been drunk when he suggested it, but he says he hadn't been. Well, who cares anyway? So, you'll be going to Ho-"

"Quentin," Severus said, suddenly appearing behind his daughter. He gave her a warning look.

"Ho- what?" Harry asked irritated.

"Ho- nothing," Severus said coldly. "Breakfast is ready."

The three of them went to the ground floor where the kitchen, living room and dining room was. Lucy was already waiting at the table. Only now did Harry look thoroughly at her. She looked like one of the models out of a fashion magazine to him: nearly taller than her husband, perfectly slim legs and stomach, wavy red hair, skin as soft as satin. Her eyes were big zircons, and her mouth was not too big but also not too small.

"Good morning, Harry, Quentin," she said, smiling.

"Morning, Mummy," Quentin said, sitting down.

"Morning," Harry muttered, doing so as well.

They started eating in silence. The silence made Harry uncomfortable, but luckily Quentin was a chatterbox.

"... and then Draco let that enormous spider fall onto Audrey's head and she screamed the house down," Quentin said, her mouth full of food.

Severus looked at her, disgustedly. "Quentin, how often do I have to tell you to swallow before you talk?"

She swallowed. "Sorry. Anyway, then Uncle Lucius came in and said that if she wouldn't quiet down they'd soon receive complain letters from Ho-" Quentin looked at Harry before she continued. "From school. But once he was out Draco and I exploded in laughter, and Audrey swore she'd never talk to either of us ever again. However, at dinner, she tried to get revenge on Draco. As we entered the dining room she tripped him, and he fell into one of the hou- - servants. The plate it - he had been carrying was meant to land on top of Draco, but instead it flew across the room right into Uncle Lucius's face!"

Suddenly there was a knock on the window. Harry jumped in fright as he saw an owl flying outside of the window, knocking with its beak on the glass, demanding to enter.

"Old fool Dumbledore," he heard Severus mutter under his breath as he got up. He opened the window and shooed the owl away, but Harry was sure that he'd seen him fiddle around on the owl's foot.

After breakfast Harry went back to his room. There were two big cardboard boxes containing his possessions. He knew that he had to unpack sooner or later, but he wasn't in the mood to. He didn't think he'd ever be in the mood to do so. Instead he decided to stroll around the castle a bit more.

On the second floor he passed a few doors as he suddenly heard noises. He walked a few steps back and noticed that they came out of one of the rooms. He recognised one of the voices as Severus Snape's, though the other one wasn't familiar to him. Harry already wanted to proceed his exploration as he heard his name mentioned.

"Albus, you know I can't take care of Harry! Especially after what his fatehr did to me!"

"Severus, you are the only one who could take care of him," Harry heard the other voice say. "Do it for him. Do it for Lily. Do it for your wife. You know how much she wants another child."

"Fine," Snape snapped after a few moments. "I'll do it."

Harry closed his eyes, his teeth gritted. He started walking away from the door. Why could adults never ask him what _he_ wanted to do? Why did they always make decisions for him? He hadn't been asked if he wanted to take up modeling. He hadn't been asked if he wanted to live with Severus and his family. Harry knew that there was only one escape. The same one that had only been there a few days before.


	10. August, 6

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 9: August, 6

This time Harry had to plan things out more carefully. After all he didn't want to be caught again. He couldn't wait to see Henry, Abigail, Francis and the twins again.

After staying up all night Harry crept out of his bedroom as noiseless as he could. The day before he'd memorized which of the steps of the staircase creak and which not, enabling him to step over them instead of making noise.

Harry wasn't sure when the members of the Snape family usually got up, but he didn't think anyone would be awake before five o'clock.

Minutes later he stepped out into the cold morning air, closing the door tight behind him, making sure not to make a sound. Optimistically he started his way towards London, knowing he could meet up with the others at Trafalgar Square at about eight o'clock, giving him roughly three hours to walk there.

An hour later, when he reached the police station he'd been brought to two days ago, his feet were hurting, but he didn't allow himself time to stop and rest. For all he knew someone could see him, someone like a policeman or even Mr. Hatherley.

Finally, at about half past seven he reached Trafalgar Square. His friends weren't in sight yet, and he sat down next to one of the fountains to wait for them. Few people were there at that time of the day.

After an half-an-hour wait Henry, Emmett, Frederick and Francis appeared.

"H-Harry!" Henry exclaimed, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I came back," Harry said. "I want to continue living with you all. Where's Abigail?"

"She died," Francis said gloomily, looking on the floor. "Yesterday night. Henry reckons she had tuberculosis."

"Harry, you can't," Henry said firmly, looking hard at the young boy. "You found a home and that's where you belong. Not on the streets."

"But I like it here better!" Harry said, irritated. "Why can't I come back?"

"They'll come looking for you," Frederick said. "Your new parents."

"They're not my parents!" Harry yelled. "I hate them!"

Henry grabbed Harry's shoulders. "Harry, I can see in your eyes that you don't. Believe me, if any of us got offered the chance to be adopted we'd go instantly. Why do you think we ran away in the first place? Because no one wanted us. No one wanted you, so we took you in. But now there is someone who wants you, so you have to go back to them."

"He said himself he doesn't want to take care of me!" Harry screamed, tears glistening in his eyes. He pulled away. " And I thought you were my friends."

"We are your friends, but this isn't your home anymore," Emmett said.

Suddenly Harry started running, but Henry was faster and tackled him down.

"Where do your new parents live?" Henry asked icily. "And believe me, if you pull another stunt like this I won't be so nice anymore."

Reluctantly Harry told him the directions. The twins, Francis and Henry started walking, making sure Harry didn't had any possibilities of running off again.

At about eleven o'clock they reached the villa of the Snape family. Severus, Lucy and Quentin stood outside, ready to sit down in the car.

"Thank god!" Severus exclaimed as he saw the teenagers who pulled Harry along with them. "We just wanted to go looking for Harry."

"We thought it'd be better if we brought him," Henry explained.

"I'll have a talk with my son about this," Severus reassured him, putting his hand on Harry's shoulder. "He won't be running off again."

"I'm not your son," Harry sneered, brushing Severus' hand off, walking into the house.

"Yeah, I know," Severus called after him. "I know that you're not my son."


	11. August, 7

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 11: August, 7

Harry didn't go to breakfast in the morning. He lay in bed, sulking. Shortly after nine there was a knock on the door.

"No," Harry said.

Lucy opened the door.

"Harry," she began, standing in the doorway. "Severus would like to speak to you in his study."

"I won't come."

"Oh, come on," she said softly, walking over to him. "I think you should," Lucy continued, sitting down next to him. "You know,when you ran away yesterday, we were all worried sick."

"Hardly," Harry mumbled. "He said himself he doesn't like me."

Lucy shook her head, now understanding. "He didn't, he just said he couldn't take care of you. And you know why? Because of your parents. Severus loathed your father but loved your mother to bits. I myself am sometimes jealous of her, even though she died protecting you. Someone who has a son as sweet as you couldn't have done differently." She laughed and ruffled Harry's hair. "S, you'll go?"

"I'll go, but only for you," Harry said, managing a small smile as he slid off the bed.

He still remembered the way to Severus' office from two days ago.

"There you are," Severus said as he entered. He stoped pacing back anf forth. "I waited for you."

"What do you want?" Harry asked.

"Talk about yesterday." Severus sat down at the desk and gestured Harry to sit opposite him.

"There's nothing to talk about," Harry muttered, staying where he was.

"Would you _please_ sit down?"

"Make me," Harry said crossing his arms in front of his chest, probably a bit too cheeky.

A second later Severus stood in front of. He slapped him across the face.

"You are what your name says you are," Severus sneered. "Trouble and annoying."

"And I thought I liked you!" Harry screamed, tears streaming down his cheeks, before he ran out of the room. "I'd rather die than to live in the same house as you!"

* * *

"Don't give any notice to what Daddy said," Quentin said cheerily. "He's always like that when you annoy him."

"Did he ever slap _you_?" Harry sobbed.

She opened and closed her mouth like a wish. "No," she muttered. "Never. But it'll become better once you two get used to each other, promise."

"Can't Mr. Hatherley find me someone else to live with?" Harry asked.

Quentin looked at him with saddening eyes. "You don't like living here, then?" she asked quietly.

"Well, I don't mind the house and Lucy and you are OK, but I don't like Severus."

Suddenly Quentin had an idea. "How would you like to meet Draco, Audrey's younger brother?" she asked. "He's the same age as you and you'll both be attending the same school."

Harry shrugged. "You seem to like him, so why shouldn't I?"

"I'll talk to Mummy. He'll surely visit tomorrow afternoon or something." A moment later she was out of the room. Maybe life here wouldn't be too bad with someone to hang out with.


	12. August, 8

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 11: August, 8

"...but Audrey is totally different than Draco," Quentin said at breakfast, eating cereal at the same time. "She hates spiders. I personally think they're not too bad. Draco wanted one as a pet you know, but Uncle Lucius couldn't get him one because of Audrey and Auntie Cissy. Oh, you'll be the best friends ever!"

"I hope so too," Harry muttered. He never had a real friend. He'd thought Henry, Abigail, Emmett, Frederick and Francis were his friends, but after what they (with the exception of Abigail) did to him, he wasn't so sure anymore.

Severus entered the dining room. He gave a letter to Quentin. Her face fell immediately.

"Oh, Draco and Audrey are grounded until school starts," she said. "When Auntie Cissy who had been visiting someone heard abut the stunt they pulled when I'd been staying the night at Malfoy Manor she said they have to learn how to behave properly when there's a guest in the house."

Severus cleared his throat. "Albus suggested we should take a holiday," he said without looking at Harry.

"Wonderful!" Quentin shrieked, suddenly happy again. "You know, we go every year for one week to Holland," she said turning to face Harry, and suddenly he felt bad about running away in the first place. But then, he'd never have ended up here. "Because of your arrival we thought we had to cancel it, but now we do go! Daddy, when do we leave?"

"In two days."

"So much to do and so little time!" Quentin exclaimed. "We need to start packing right away, Harry, don't you think?"

"Why not," the boy shrugged as he followed her out.

"So, you ever went to Holland?" she asked as she jumped up the stairs excitedly.

"I never went on a holiday," Harry confessed. Quentin stared at him open-mouthed, not moving a muscle.

"Oh, you'll love it!" she exclaimed. "The hotel is right next to the beach; it's got a tennis court as well. And a swimming pool! There's a buffet for breakfast and dinner every day. You can eat as much as you like. You know, it's Mummy and Daddy's wedding anniversary in three days. They got married in Holland on a boat, isn't that romantic?"

Harry smiled, listening to her. If anyone needed information about Holland, they needn't look in a book but ask her.


	13. August, 9

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 13: August, 9

"So, you forgave Daddy?" Quentin asked, rummaging through her wardrobe.

Harry laughed drily. "Not a bit," he answered, watching her. "Slapping a child is a serious matter."

"Yeah, you're right," she murmured absentmidnedly. She pulled two bikinis out of the wardrobe, a blue one and a pink one. "Which one is better?" she asked, turning around to Harry.

"Blue, definitely."

"Is it because you don't like pink?"

Instead of answering Harry grinned.

"Me too," Quentin smiled, throwing the pink bikini back into the wardrobe and the blue one into her rucksack. The she continued her search for clothes.

After a moment of silence Harry spoke again, his voice shaking. "There's something - something you haven't told me."

Quentin looked up, surprised. "About Holland? I thought -"

"No," he cut her off. "Not Holland. Me. About me."

She gave him the most sorriest look she had. "I'm sorry. I'd love to tell you, but I can't. I promised Daddy and Professor Dumbledore."

"Who is that Dumbledore?" Harry continued to question.

"I - I can't say anything more."

"Please," the boy begged, sitting up to look her in the eyes. "Please. I need to know. My whole life has been nothing but lies and I need to know the truth."

"I know you do, but I'm not the one to tell you," Quentin whispered, a tear triggering down her cheek. She rubbed it off. "I - I think you should go now."

Harry stood up, sighing. He knew he wouldn't have any luck with her.

Once back in his room he too started packing. He found swimming trucks, and he was sure that Lucy had bought them for him for he knew that he hadn't possessed a pair when he'd been living with the Dursleys. They had never taught him how to swim, and he wondered if he'd learn how to in Holland.

"You never stop learning," Harry muttered, smiling. Although he hadn't forgiven Severus yet, he was sure that sooner or later he would.

* * *

A/N: As soon as they depart for Holland the chapters will become longer, I promise!


	14. August, 10

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 14: August, 10

The whole morning Quentin told her whole family all she knew about Holland over and over again. They would be going with the ship which would leave at quarter to midnight, menaing they'd had to be there at least two hours before.

"I'm sick of hearing of Holland," Harry moaned at lunch. "If it continues like that we don't have to go because I already know everything!"

"Practice is always better than theory," Lucy smiled.

Severus hadn't said a word since he'd broken the news that they'd go to Holland.

"You do not _have_ to listen to me," Quentin said sulkily. "Anyway, how are we dividing the cabins?"

Severus cleared his throat. "You and Lucy will have a cabin and me and Harry."

"Daddy -"

"No, Quentin," Lucy cut her off quietly. "Please don't argue."

"But why can't Harry and I share a cabin?"

"Because I don't trust you two."

"You won't be able to watch us all the time in Ho-"

"_Who_ says you two will be in the same -"

"There are enough secret -"

"I know all of them, Quentin. You know -"

"No, you don't," Quentin said coldly. "You don't. Harry, let's go."

As soon as they were out of the dining room Quentin looked back at her mother and father quietly talking.

"You know," she whispered, watching them. "Sometimes I feel like their marriage is perfect - too perfect. I mean, they never fight or anything. It's like - I don't know." She looked away, tears glistening in her eyes. Harry hugged her tightly and she hugged back. "It's as if Daddy didn't marry Mummy because he loved her but because he thought she'd be a good wife. Harry, Daddy doesn't want me to tell you, but I think you should know. The only girl he ever loved was _your_ mother."

* * *

_The only girl he ever loved was my mother_. That sentence repeated itself over and over again in Harry's head as he sat in the train, staring out of the window. _The only girl he ever loved was my mother._

"Harry!"

"Erm... yeah?" Harry asked. He hadn't noticed that Lucy had called his name.

"Do you want some water melon?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah, why not." He took the small plastic box in which water melon pieces, cut into squares, were and the fork that Lucy gave him. Slowly he started to eat. He wondered how Quentin had found out, how she had found out that Severus had loved his mother. Had he told her? No, surely not.

"Another half-an-hour until we reach the ship," Quentin moaned, looking at her watch. "Believe me, Harry, the ship is gigantic! I can't wait to go on the deck and look down into the water!"

"Hmmm," Harry grunted. He had always been scared of heights.

Seeing that no one was interested to hear anything about the ship or Holland Quentin shut up. She opened her mouth numerous more times wanting to say something, but she though it better to keep quiet rather than annoy everyone with her chattering so shortly before they went on holiday.

Finally they arrived at the ship however. Everyone took their rucksacks and left the train.

"Whoa!" Harry gasped as he saw the ferry. "You were right, Quentin. It _is_ gigantic!"

Quarter of an hour later, after Severus had checked them in and after they had gone through the passport control, they, as one of the first passengers, entered the ship.

"Our cabins are on the ninth deck," Severus said, looking at the boarding cards. The four of them went to the escalators. As soon as they stepped out on the ninth deck Quentin, who was more than familiar with the ship, took the lead and showed the others where the cabins were. Severus had booked cabins 9113 and 9114. Lucy and Quentin took 9114 and Severus and Harry the other one. Before they went into the cabins Severus gave the boarding cards out.

"Don't lose them," he said. "They're the key to open the cabins."

Once inside Severus and Harry put their rucksacks down.

"I take the lower bed," Harry said instantly as he saw the bunk bed.

"Fine with me," Severus muttered.

In the cabin was the bunk bed, a small table-like thing with a mirror, a seating bench in the corner and a door leading to a small bathroom in which were a toilet, a sink and a shower. Above the seating bench was a telephone. Severus took the receiver and dialled 9114. He listened for a few moments before he spoke.

"In five minutes then," he said, hanging up.

"The others come in five minutes so that we all can go up to the deck before the ferry departs," Severus told Harry who grunted in reply. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say anything else but didn't.

After they spent a few moments up in the cold air they went down to the dining room to play cards.

"You know how to play rommee?" Quentin questioned as she mixed the double set of cards.

Harry shook his head. "No," he said.

"Easy." She started giving out the cards. "Everyone gets twelve cards. The picture cards and the ace count ten points, the other cards whatever number they show. If you have a joker you can use it anywhere you like, but you can't have more jokers than other cards on the table."

"So. The one who begins takes one card from the pile. If you have thirty or more points you can start putting cards on the table, but it only works if you have, for example, three kings from different colours or a sequence of numbers - e.g. five, six, seven, eight, nine - of the same colour. Then once you did that you can put any cards with any amount of points on the table as long as they either are a sequence of the same colour or the same cards with different colours. As soon as you can't do anything more you have to put a card away to show that you finished. Oh, and by the way: you can if you are able to add cards to the cards other people put on the table."

"Okay..."

"Mummy, you start," Quentin decided.

After they finished a game which ended in Harry's favour the ship started moving.

"Let's go on the deck!" Quentin exclaimed, hurriedly collecting the cards.

The wind was stronger than before, and as soon as they stepped outside and saw how the ship was turning around in the water Harry staretd feeling unwell. They went up to the deck.

"I - I don't feel well," Harry muttered moments later.

"Maybe it'd be better if you bring him yo the cabin, Severus," Lucy said, looking at Harry worriedly. "He's never been on a ship before, so he might become seasick."

Once back in the cabin Harry went to bed instantly, and after reassuring Severus that everything was fine the man went back up to the deck.

Ten minutes later Quentin came to visit. After Harry told her that he was tired she turned the lights off, but then she needed to get something and turned them on again. Seconds later they were off, but not a minute after that she decided she wanted to put the cards into Severus' rucksack. It continued for a few moments with her turning the lights on and off, and suddenly Harry jumped out of the bed and dashed to the bathroom.

"You okay?" Quentin asked as she heard Harry making noises as if he was throwing up.

At first Harry thought he'd thrown up blood as he saw something red swimming in the toilet, but then, at a second glance, he identified it as water melon.

"I hope those melon pieces burn in hell," he muttered as he sat there on the floor, leaning against the door and ignoring Quentin who insisted upon coming in and seeing how he was. "Because that's where they belong..."


	15. August, 11

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 15: August, 11

_"...we'll be arriving at the Hoek van Holland in thirty minutes..."_

"Do we have to get up?" Harry moaned, turning around.

"Yes we do," Severus told him, climbing down the latter. Harry heard the bathroom door close. It would give him a few more minutes to sleep...

* * *

"Oh, that's so sweet!" Quentin exclaimed as she saw her father carrying Harry, his head on Severus' shoulder. "If he could see this he wouldn't believe it!"

"Be quiet then and don't wake him up," Lucy smiled as she took Severus' rucksack and handed Quentin Harry's.

"Can't we make a photo?" Quentin begged. "A moment like this won't come very often."

"Quentin," Severus began, annoyed, but before he could say anything else Lucy had already slid the camera out of her rucksack and, checking that no one was in sight, she made a photo.

"I can't wait to see it developed!" Quentin said.

"Huh?" Harry muttered sleepily, his eyes half open.

"Go back to sleep," Lucy whispered in his ear, and no sooner than she finished the sentence were his eyes closed again and his breathing in a regular rythm.

* * *

Harry yawned and rubbed his eyes, sitting up.

"Are we already in Holland?" he asked sleepily.

"We've nearly reached Rotterdam," Quentin reported, looking out of the train window. "We'll be able to get some breakfast there."

"Noooo!"Harry wailed, remembering the melon pieces. "No food!"

"Why don't you and I go and see when the next train to Amsterdam leaves while Lucy and Quentin go and get some food," Severus suggested.

Harry shrugged.

A few minutes later they arrived at Rotterdam Centraal. While Lucy and Quentin went out of the train station in search of some late breakfast Severus and Harry made their way to the information desk where a small queue was waiting.

"Wanneer gaat de volgende trein naar Amsterdam Centraal vertrekken?" Severus asked once it was their turn.

"I didn't know you can speak Dutch," Harry muttered.

"There's not much you know about me," Severus said, smiling.

"In vijftien minuten op platform 1b," the woman replied.

"Bedankt," Severus said before he and Harry went to meet Lucy and Quentin who meanwhile had gotten food. They went to the main entrance to wait for the others.

"Harry," Severus began.

"Yeah?"

"I... I - how do you like Holland so far?"

"Is okay I guess."

"We found some sandwiches," Quentin said as she and Lucy appeared minutes later. She handed a paper bag to Severus.

"We can buy some more food once we're in Amsterdam," Severus responded, looking at his watch. "We have about seven minutes left until the train departs."

"Why don't we go straight to the hotel?" Harry questioned.

"Because we won't be able to check in until three o'clock in the afternoon," Lucy explained. "I'm not sure why but that's the way it goes in Leuwenhorst*."

"So what will we do in Amsterdam?" Harry questioned.

"How about we take a boats tour?" Quentin suggested. "It's so warm today I don't think we'd want to walk very far."

"You're right," Severus said. "And that way Harry can see a lot of the things we already saw when we went sight-seeing. The next time we go into Amsterdam we can go to places like the Anne Frank Huis if Harry wants to."

The train ride to Amsterdam Centraal took forty-five minutes.

"Who's is the cheese sandwich?" Severus questioned, pulling a sandwich out of the bag.

"Mine," Quentin said.

"Could have guessed so," he muttered under his breath. "Ham and cheese?"

"We've got that one for Harry," Lucy said.

"I'll eat it later," Harry said.

"Tuna is for you, Lucy? Then the egg and cheese must be for me."

Sooner than any of them thought they arrived at Amsterdam Cetraal. After putting their luggage into lockers they went outside, looking for a sign advertising boat tours. They found one five minutes away from the train station.

The boats tour was one-and-a-half hours long. After it ended (Quentin had made dozens of photos, especially of her parents and Harry) they went in search of a cafe to eat lunch. They walked around a bit more and then started their journey back.

Shortly after half past three they arrived at the hotel.

"I'm tired," Harry moaned as Severus checked them in.

"Here are your keys," Severus said, giving Quentin and Harry each a plastic card. "You have room 5115 and Lucy and I have 5116. I suggest we go up to the rooms and rest a bit. Tonight after dinner we can go to the beach if you want to."

Quentin showed Harry the way to their room while Severus and Lucy left themselves time to go up.

"Oh, you'll love the beach!" Quentin said happily, putting her rucksack down.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I wanna sleep right now if that's okay."

"Guess it is. I'll try to be quiet."

"Thanks," Harry smiled, knowing how hard it was for her to do so. Moments later he was in bed, deeply asleep.

An hour later he woke up again at the noise of television.

"Oh, did I wake you?" Quentin asked.

"No, no, it's alright," Harry reassured her. There was a knock on the door. He got up and opened it.

"So did we come all this way just to watch television?" Severus asked as he saw Quentin lying on her bed, remote control her her hand.

"Can we go down to the beach?" Quentin asked.

"Yes," Lucy said. "You two get changed and we can go."

"Isn't it a bit weird," Harry said once the adults were gone again, "that Severus doesn't trust us to be one night together in a cabin but he trusts us severel nights in a double bed?"

Quentin shrugged. "He'll have his reasons. Anyway, tomorrow is their wedding anniversary. I'm sure he's gonna want to spent some time with Mummy." She smirked smugly.

Harry gasped. "You don't mean?!"

"Exactly that."

Once they had changed into their swimming clothes and over them shorts and t-shirts, they went to knock at Severus and Lucy's room door.

"Thought you might want to go swimming before dinner," Lucy said, pointing at the small bag she had packed. In it was a big bottle of water, two towels and sun lotion.

Only minutes later they were at the beach. The sand was finer than Harry had imagined. After they'd found a space to sit Harry and Quentin wanted to go in the water instantly.

"Not unless you put on the sun lotion," Lucy said, giving them the bottle.

"Oh," Quenin moaned, but she knew there was nothing she could do against it. Harry helped her put it on her face and she helped him. Then they went into the north sea.

"This water is cold!" Harry gasped as the water splashed against their legs.

"You'll get used to it," Quentin promised. And she was right. Not a minute after she and Harry had walked forward enough for the water to be waist-high.

"You know," she said as a middle-seized wave came towards them. "In the last few years Audrey, Draco and I made up some games."

"Games?" Harry questioned. The wave hit him against the chest and he lost balance. He tried getting up again but no matter how hard he tried the waves kept keeping him down. He exploded in laughter.

"I - I can't get up," he said between his laughters, trying to get a hold in the sand.

Quentin too laughed as she helped him up. As she leaned over to grab his arm a huge wave came over them, making them go under water. Once they were above surface they laughed even harder.

"So. The first game is Hand Walking. It means your whole body as to float in the water and your hands have to be on the ground, and, with the waves pushing you forward you have to walk. Second game is Wave Hopping. It means you have to stand with your back facing the sea and, using the force of the waves, you have to hop as much distance forward as you can. Last but not least is Wave Jumping. You have to jump right into a wave, and the person who travels the greatest distance is the winner. In that game however you have to be careful not to go out too much, for that can be dangerous."

"Why don't we try all three?" Harry questioned.

"At the same time?" Quentin asked disbelievingly.

"Why not? We can call it Hand Hopping Jump."

"And how would you play it?"

"That's what we've got to find out," Harry said, sounding very optimistically.

Unknown to them Lucy and Severus made a few photos of them.

When they got hunger Quentin and Harry came out of the water again, washed the salt water off their bodies and dried themselves. After putting their clothes back on the four of them made their way back to the hotel for dinner."

"And afterwards we come back?" Quentin questioned.

"Yes, we come back," Lucy reassured her.

As soon as they finished dinner first went to their rooms, too full to go to the beach.

"I have a question, Quentin," Harry said.

"I'll answer as best as I can," she replied, changing the channel.

"Why does Severus always wear long-sleeved shirts? I mean, it's totally hot outside, so why doesn't he war short-sleeved shirts?"

Quentin turned the television off. "He has to tell you himself," she said, sounding final. "It is not my decision to do so."

Later when the sun started setting they went back outside.

They sat on a blanket at the beach, watching the sun set, as Quentin suggested to walk along the water.

Severus cleared his throat. "Harry, could you stay here?" he asked quietly. "I'd like to talk to you."

Harry shrugged, "Kay."

Once Lucy and Quentin were out of earshot Severus began.

"I - I wanted to say that I'm sorry that I slapped you. I don't know what overcame me."

Harry looked long and hard at him. Then he shrugged again. "Guess I haven't been behaving that good lately." After a pause he continued. "Tell me. About my past. Quentin said she promised you and this Dumbledore character she wouldn't tell me."

Severus looked at the sea, the last sun rays reflecting on the water.

"Your parents were killed by a man. You know that you're a wizard? Well, they sacrificed themselves for you because they loved you, so that man - the darkest wizard of all times - couldn't kill you, but he gave you the scar you have on your forehead. Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, thought it best to leave you with your mother's relatives, but that didn't turn out to be good after all. Well, from September onwards you'll be attending Hogwarts. I myself teach potions there. I think it's better if Quentin tells you about Hogwarts, for she seems to know more than any of us."

"Thanks," Harry murmured, smiling ruefully as he thought about his parents. "Thanks for telling me."

* * *

*The hotel Leuwenhorst is not actually located at the beach but 45 minutes walking time(10 minutes with the bus) away.

A/N: Hope you liked it.


	16. August, 12

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 16: August, 12

Severus had prebooked the tennis court for the next morning at eight o'clock. Afterwards they'd get changed and then they'd have breakfast.

"Ever played tennis before?" Quentin questioned as they walked towards the court.

Harry shook his head as Severus unlocked the door. "Never."

"Well, you'll like it."

"What are the rules?"

"We always play some valleys to warm up with," Lucy explained, handing Harry a racket. "Quentin will explain everything to you."

"Okay," Quentin said, positioning herself in the middle of the serve square. "You serve like this." She threw a tennis ball in the air and hit it with the racket above her head. She had, on purpose, only hit it lightly so that it wouldn't go over the net. Quentin took another one. "Or you serve like this." She let the ball fall down on the ground, and as soon as it came up high enough she hit it. This time she'd used more strength so that it would go over the net but still make it easy for Harry to get.

Harry stepped forward as soon as he had calculated in his head about where the ball should land. As good as he could he hit the tennis ball back. Quentin reacted fast enough to get it though, and she hit it back with a bit too much strength so that it went behind the line marking where the playing ground ended.

"That was well good," she gasped. "Only too bad I didn't hit it back so that you could catch it. If we'd play a game it'd be your turn to serve as it went into out."

After about ten minutes Severus and Quentin started a game. Harry watched carefully and Lucy counted the points. They finished just shortly before nine o'clock with Quentin winning 2:1.

"We have one hour left before breakfast finishes," Lucy said. "Go get changed Quentin, Harry. We'll bring the rackets, balls and the key back to the reception and then we'll get you."

"You were right," Harry smiled as they walked back to the hotel. "I do like tennis."

There was a wide variety of foods at the breakfast buffet: scrambled eggs, bacon, cooked eggs, numerous kinds of bread and bread rolls, fruit juices, milk, butter milk, cereal, fruits, salad, yogurt, various kinds of marmalade, three or four kinds of cheese and salami, and a lot, lot more.

"Enjoy your fatt dead animal," Quentin muttered as she saw Severus put bacon on his plate.

"I will," he grinned.

Harry gave him an irritated glance.

"She's living in the world of the vegetarians," he explained. "For the last few years she hasn't been eating a bite of meat."

Harry looked at the bacon he had wanted to put on his plate. "Maybe I'll try it out as well."

"Finally!" Quentin said triumphantly. "I've been trying to get other people become one, but until now I never succeeded."

"Oh man. Now we've got to put up with two vegetarians," Lucy sighed.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the short chapter, but my laptop is infected by some kind of virus and I haven't been able to get rid of it yet.


	17. August, 13

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 17: August, 13

A/N:  
Wanneer gaat de volgende trein naar Amsterdam Centraal vertrekken = When does the next train to Amsterdam Centraal leave  
In vijftien minuten op platform 1b = In fifteen minutes on platform 1b  
Bedankt = Thanks

* * *

The next morning after breakfast they went to Amsterdam again. As soon as they arrived at the central train station they made their way to the Anne Frank Huis*. They had to wait in the queue for half-an-hour, but finally they could enter.

"I never really knew about that diary of hers," Harry muttered under his breath as they entered the first room. Quotations from her diary were written on the wall.

"You've got to read it," Quentin told him. "It's totally fantastic."

The next room also had quotations on the wall, and in the third room there were television screens on the wall. In front of them stood poles with phone receivers and buttons on which the names of different languages stood. Quentin took one of them and pressed the button labeled English. Severus and Lucy did the same. Harry, not knowing what else to do, did what they did. Through the receiver he listened to a woman telling the story of Anne Frank, why she and her family went into hiding and what happened.

Next came a corridor leading to the back of the house, and then another room. There were glass boxes on top of tables showing varies artefacts from the people in hiding and their helpers.

Then there was a staircase leading to the second floor. There were more rooms, more things on show, more quotations on the walls. And then they came to the room with the book case.

"Wow," Harry whispered, entering the Annexe. "The room is quite big though," he objected, seeing Otto, Edith and Margot Frank's bedroom.

"Yes, but with furniture it's all a lot smaller," Quentin breathed. She moved on to Anne Frank and Fritz Pfeffer's bedroom and Harry followed her. Then came a small bathroom, a "leg-breaking" staircase. On the last floor there was the kitchen/Mr. and Mrs. van Pels's bedroom and Peter van Pels's bedroom. There was a latter leading up to the attic but there was a piece of glass over it so that you couldn't go up.

"And to think that they lived in here for a bit over two years," Harry said as they went into the new-looking corridor leading away from the Annexe. They came to a white room with even more television screens showing different things, e.g. an interview with Hannah Goslar (one of Anne's friends) and one with Otto Frank. The last room had glass boxes in it showing things like Anne's original diary, many versions of the book The Diary of a Young Girl with different book covers and in many, many different languages, etc. etc. Then there was a metal staircase leading downstairs again. There was the Anne Frank House Cafe, the Museum Bookshop and computer screens on which you could learn more about the people in hiding and their helpers, 263 Prinsengracht, the holocaust and other things.

"Wow," Harry said after they met Severus and Lucy again and exited the house. "Wow."

"Now let us go to the Van Gogh Museum!" Quentin said. "I want to make a photograph."

Harry gave her an irritated look.

"You'll see it when we arrive there," Severus smirked, already knowing what his daughter wanted.

Three quarters of an hour later they arrived there, and Harry understood instantly. On a shield on the building of the Van Gogh Museum stood: Paulus Potterstraat 7.

"Now stand under it and I make a photo," Quentin ordered. She managede to do it so that only the word Potterstraat was on the photograph, along with Harry waving at the camera. Little did he know that later when the photograph was development it'd be moving.

* * *

* I described how it is nowadays and how much I remember from when I went there for I don't have any idea how different it was in 1991, and the same is with Leuwenhorst


	18. August, 14

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 18: August, 14

Right after breakfast Severus went to the reception and got the keys to four bikes. As Harry had already noticed Holland was the country of cyclists, and often he saw roads made only for bicycles. Quentin had planned that they would follow a country path until they'd reach a windmill* at about lunch time. In the last fifteen years they had always gone to that windmill, and the owner was quite happy to show them around and explain everything to them. So, after the guided tour - or before if they were _really_ hungry - they'd have lunch outside the windmill, and then they'd cycle back to the hotel. Depending on how long the journey back took they'd either go swimming in the north sea before dinner or they'd go to the swimming pool in the hotel.

After they got their bikes they started upon their journey, Quentin leading them. Harry had some trouble keeping his balance as he had only once before sat on a bike, but sooner or later he got used to it.

To Harry Quentin seemed somehow both excited and nervous. Was she excited to meet someone but nervous because of her parents?

The weather wasn't too hot but also not too cold. The wind was blowing lightly, making the sun shining down on the four cyclists more berable. The country path was lined with flowers and other plants. Harry could see some trees in the distance, and he was sure that, by the amount he could make out, there was some kind of forest.

Just like Quentin had said they arrived at the windmill shortly before lunch time. Outside was a teenage boy, maybe sixteen years of age, cutting wood with an axe. He was tall for his age, had a sharp nose and slim face, bare chested with sweat running down his body.

"Hey," he called, stopping what he was doing. "Already wondered where you are."

"That's Tony," Quentin muttered into Harry's ear as they got off the bikes. "The son of the owner of the windmill. Oh, and by the way, he's a wizard too."

"Who's that little fellow?" Tony asked, roughing Harry's hair. Harry grunted in reply, , pressing the hair back down on his head. He didn't even like the looks of that Tony.

"The newest member of the family," Lucy said. "Harry."

"Harry Potter," Harry muttered.

Tony's eyes grew big in interest. "So, so. The famous Harry Potter."

Harry looked irritated at Severus who cleared his throat.

"I'm deeply sorry for not telling you," he said. "In the magical world you're... famous. For defeating the Dark Lord."

Harry nodded, understanding.

Tony gasped. "How can you not know?" he cried. "You did not only defeat Him-Who-Cannot-Be-Named but you are also the only one to survive the killing curse!"

"Tony, where's Abe?" Severus questioned. He didn't want to start talking about Harry's past at the moment, especially not when Harry knew so little.

"He's inside, but -"

"Thank you, that is quite enough," Severus cut him off, icily. He started walking towards the entrance of the mill.

"And Quentin," Tony called. She went over to him and he whispered something into her ear, and she nodded in agreement, looking relieved.

"I wonder what they're talking about," Lucy muttered.

"Can't be anything good," her husband replied.

"Ah, Severus!" an elderly man said as they stepped into the mill. "I haven't seen you in ages! Tony welcomed you, did he not?"

"You could say that," Severus said. "Abe, this is Harry."

Abe's eyesbrows rose. "Harry Potter?" he whispered disbelievingly. "Am I really standing in front of _Harry Potter_?"

"Yes. Harry Potter. The Boy-Who-Lived. Can we continnue now?"

"Yes, yes, of course!" Abe said, clapping his hands.

"Tony will be going to Hogwarts with us," Quentin whispered, stepping up behind Harry. "He'll be in his sixth year, Ravenclaw."

"Raven-what?"

"Oh, yeah, I haven't told you yet. There are four houses: Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Slytherin. Hufflepuff is for cowards, Ravenclaw for the itelligent, Gryffindor for the bravest, and Slytherin is for the evil ones, though it's not actually true because Audrey is there. I myself am in Ravenclaw as well, and I'll be in my third year."

"How do you... you know... get sorted?"

Quentin laughed. "No first graders are told that," she said. "But I tell you one thing: it's easier than you think."

The tour through the windmill was interesting. Harry learned and saw a lot of new things. They ate lunch together with Abe and Tony, and what he noticed was that Tony and Quentin exchanged glances, many glances. He wondered why.

* * *

* I never was in a windmill, so I didn't go into details in the description


	19. August, 15

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 19: August, 15

Harry didn't know why but he woke up a lot earlier than usual. Not being able to go back to sleep he lay there, watching Quentin breathe. He thought about yesterday. About that guy Tony. There was something about him that Harry didn't like. Wait - maybe he'd woken up because of something he'd dreamed? Maybe in his dream he had found out what was between Quentin and that Tony? But he couldn't remember. He couldn't remember what he'd dreamed no matter how had he tried to remember.

"Harry," Quentin murmured sleepily, yawning. "What're ya doin' up so early?"

"Tell me about Hogwarts," Harry said instead of answering.

A moment later she sat up straight, fully awake. The sleepiness had gone and her eyes twinkled with joy as she began.

"So. You know about the houses, but not the founders of them, do you?"

Harry shook his head.

"Gryffindor was founded by Godric Gryffindor, who..."

Listening to Quentin took his mind off things. Soon he didn't waste another thought about Tony anymore but thought about how wonderful it must be to go to Hogwarts.

"Oh, and by the way. When I'm at Hogwarts I'm known as Quintella Wintergarten, Mummy's maiden name."

"Why's that?" Harry asked irritated.

"For my own safety. Daddy is...well... not very liked by most people, so Professor Dumbledore wants me to go under Mummy's name."

"Yeah, but you look so much like him," Harry objected.

"Harry, Harry, Harry," Quentin lectured him. "There's nothing a few spells won't do in the world of magic. Remember that!"

"One question," Harry said, suddenly remembering. "Didn't you say, back at... home that Severus Lucy's wedding anniversary was some time?"

"Yeah, the day we came here," Quentin said. "Some time late at night when they knew we'd be asleep they went downstairs to the bar."

"How'd you know?"

Quentin smiled. "First, I'm curious. Second, they've done it every year like that."

That afternoon, when they once again were in Amsterdam, Harry smelled something he had never smelled before.

"What's that for a smell?" he muttered, wrinkling his nose.

"Hemp," Severus said, gently pushing him forward. "There's a hemp coffee shop over on the other side."

"A hemp -"

"Coffee shop," Quentin whispered into his ear, looking at it. Suddenly her eyes widened with fright. "That's a coffee shop where you can legally buy and smoke hemp."

Harry turned his head to look at the shop to see what frightened her so. "Isn't that -" he began as he saw someone, but got cut off by Quentin.

"So, where do we eat lunch?" she asked loudly in order to not let her parents know what Harry tried to say.

Harry looked at her and then back at the shop. The person had disappeared. Had it been his imagination or had Tony really been there?


	20. August, 16

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 20: August, 16

"Oh, I can't believe it's our last day here," Quentin moaned at breakfast. "I'd like it if we could stay for another week."

"You've said it every year since you started talking," Severus muttered while drinking coffee. "How I miss the quiet hours of not having to listen to you!"

"Daddy!" Quentin exclaimed, slapping his arm playfully.

"She's right though," Harry said. "If I had to choose between going to school and staying here for another week I'd definately choose staying here."

"There's nothing you can do about it however," Lucy said.

Severus cleared his throat. "There are still a few things which we have to talk over. For example, as soon as you step onto the Hogwarts Express the fact that I'm your adoptive father id forgotten, do I make myself clear?"

Harry nodded slowly, not understanding why it was so important.

"Secondly, Lucy and I expect you to do the best you can and to get good grades, no matter in which house you are in. If you do not we will punish you if we think it is correct."

"What for punishments?" Harry croaked.

"We will ground you, confiscate things from you and things like that," Lucy said. "Depending on the situation it might be a mere warning or a more server punishment, like helping out the groundskeeper after school."

"But always keep in mind that we only give out fair punishments," Severus added.

After breakfast they played tennis again, and after that they went to the beach. Quentin and Harry swam in the north sea again, played different games and had a lot of fun.

"I can't believe the holiday went by so fast!" Quentin said that evening, making herself comfortable in the bed.

"It's been my first holiday," Harry said, sitting down on the bed. He put his glasses on the bedside table. "And it was great. I never had so much fun in my life." He longed to talk with her about Tony, but thought it better not to.

"You know, when I'm older I want to live in Holland."

"Doing what?"

"I'd love to be a fashion designer," Quentin whispered. "But don't tell anyone! Last year when these people from the Ministry were at Hogwarts to tlk with the fifth year students about what they want to be when they're older, I ran into one of them, an elderly woman who wore nothing but pink." She wrinkled her nose in thought before she continued. "I told her of my dream, but all she did was to laugh and tell me to become a healer."

"Healer?"

"Muggles call them doctors I think. But I don't want to waste my whole life doing something I don't want to do. The majority of girls in my year group and house want to be one thinking it's the perfect job for a girl, but I think most of them could make something better out of themselves."

"And I think you should do what you want," Harry replied. He smiled. "You know, before I ran away the first time I was a child model."

"Really?" Quentin asked excited, sitting up. She smiled broadly. "Maybe you could help me some time with my creations."

Harry shrugged. Why not?"


	21. August, 17

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 21: August, 17

A/N: sorry for not updating yesterday, but my mind had been elsewhere and I couldn't concentrate on writing...

Harry, Quentin, Severus and Lucy went to breakfast early as the bus to Den Haag would leave at half past nine. From there they'd take the train to Rotterdam where they'd take the next train to the Hoek van Holland.

"It's weird going back to London," Quentin sighed, looking out of the window of the bus. "But at the same time I can't wait to be at school again!"

"I'm already nervous how we're going to be selected," Harry muttered.

"One thing you should remember," Severus said, "is not to listen to other students who've been told by their older siblings what the routine is, especially not if the student is called Weasley by surname."

"Why not?"

"Older siblings always exaggerate greatly," Lucy explained. "The Weasley twins are known to be great jokers, so don't believe everything they say."

Harry nodded.

"Once we're home I've gotta talk to Audrey about going shopping for the new year," Quentin announced.

"Won't be necessary," Severus replied, shaking his head. "Lucius went with her and Draco while we were on holiday, together with Narcissa."

"Oh, Auntie Cissa did that on purpose," his daughter said sulkily.

"I can't blame her," Severus murmured. "You always seem to get other people into trouble."

Quentin glared at him and didn't speak to him again until they reached the ship.

"Oh Daddy," she said, hugging him. "I could never stay mad at you for long."

Severus grunted. "We should hurry up and find a table to sit at, otherwise they're all occupied when we're there," he said.

After they checked in and found a table to sit at Severus went to get drinks while Quentin unpacked her cards.

Half an hour later the ship started moving.

"Come Harry, let's go up to the deck!" Quentin exclaimed.

"He seems to be alright," Lucy said, watching them go outside.

"Maybe it were these melon pieces you gave him," Severus chuckled.

"Are you trying to say -"

"No, course not."

The remainder of the ship cruise went by without any incidents. Harry didn't get seasick again. They played cards most of the time, sometimes paused to buy something to drink or eat or go up to the deck.

"I love the sunset," Quentin told Harry, leaning over the banister of the deck. They could already see the coast of England in the distance. Severus and Lucy were downstairs, playing cards. "I love it because it symbolises the end of the day to me, the end of everything that happened. If I fought with someone then the sunset would be the end of that fight. If I was mad at someone then the sunset would make me forget all about it."

"I know what you mean," Harry whispered, looking out at the sea. "And the sunrise gives you the chance to start new. It gives you the chance to forgive and forget."

Quentin sighed, turning around.

"What's the matter?"

"Oh, it's just that when we're back at Hogwarts it means back to acting as if Daddy wasn't my father, as if I hated him like everyone else who isn't in Slytherin."

"Then why didn't you go to Slytherin where you could be you?"

She shook her head. "Professor Dumbledore had worked everything out, Harry. I'd change my identity and be safe. If I was in Slytherin and made one mistake or if Daddy did something fatherly to me, then everything would be over. I'd be in danger. So I sweet-talked the hat to put me into Ravenclaw. That way it'd be easier for both of us to keep our roles up. But I don't want to do it anymore. It makes my heart ache, wants me to tell everyone that I'm his daughter, but I can't. I can't because otherwise I wouldn't be safe anymore."

"What do you mean, you'd be in danger if everyone found out?"

"Oh, Harry, you're so lucky you don't know," Quentin sobbed, not able to hold her tears back. "You're _so_ lucky."

"Why would you call me lucky? My parents are dead, I don't even know anything about my oh-so-famous past, and even less about Voldemort."

Quentin couldn't hold it back anymore. "It's because of him, You-Know-Who," she blurted out without thinking. "If he found out that Daddy has a daughter, he'd kill all of us. Only the Malfoys and Dumbledore know about it."

"Wait a minute," Harry said. "Are you trying to say that Severus is - is one of Voldemort's _followers_?"

"He was, but people believe he still is," Quentin whispered, rubbing her blood-shot eyes. "And - and once You-Know-Who is back, he'll be a spy for Dumbledore. Oh, I hate that old fool so much for making Daddy do all this! If he wanted to he could have given all of us new identities as soon as it had come out that Daddy and Mummy were to be married, so that they didn't have to live in fear, but no, he can only think of himself and said that Daddy was the only help the wizarding world has left. He said that he _has_ to be a spy, to risk his life for information about You-Know-Who!"

Harry hugged her tight, staying silent. He couldn't think of anything reassuring to say, and even if something had crossed his mind, he knew it wouldn't help. He looked out at the sea, listening to Quentin cry her heart out on his shoulder, as he thought about what she had said. Severus had been one of Voldemort's followers. Maybe it had been partially his fault that his parents had been killed.

* * *

A/N: By September 1 all the August chapters will be updated, so in the next few days I might update twice a day


	22. August, 18

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 22: August, 18

"When will we be going to Diagon Alley?" Quentin asked at breakfast.

"Calm down, calm down," Severus told her, not able to suppress a smile. "We've just come back from our holiday, can't we rest for a day or two?"

"What _is_ this alley?" Harry asked.

Quentin shook her head, looking sad. "How little you know about the wonders of the Magical World. It is saddening."

"Well I wouldn't say that Diagon Alley is that much of a wonder," Lucy said critically. "It may be well hid from Muggles but that's about where it ends."

"And what are these Muggle-thingys?" Harry asked desperately, not understanding half of what they were saying.

"Muggle-thingys as you called them are non-magical people, meaning that they are not wizards, witches squibs," Severus explained. "And Diagon Alley is the shopping street for the likes of us."

"Squibs???"

"People who were born to witches and wizards but can't perform magic like their parents," Quentin said.

"Now I've heard everything," Harry muttered.

"No, you haven't," Quentin conjectured. "You haven't heard about pure bloods, half-bloods, muggle-born, quarter-bloods and three-quarter-bloods."

"Quentin, how many times do I have to tell you that there aren't such things as quarter-bloods and three-quarter-bloods," Severus asked sternly.

"Yeah, but I can't be a pure blood because of you and not a half-blood because of Mummy," Quentin pointed out. "And if-"

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked irritated. "Pure bloods, half-bloods? What are these things?"

Quentin exploded in laughter. She couldn't help herself. "That aren't _things_Harry! It's how you call people who come from certain families. Families like the Malfoys or the Wintergartens are well-known pure blood families, meaning that they don't have anything mugglelish - nonmagical - in them - at least that's what they claim. Muggleborns are witches and wizards which were born to muggles but still possess magical abilities, which makes it rather weird and more probable that they come from a long line of squibs. Half-bloods like you and Daddy are half magical and half non-magical, which actually means one of your parents is muggle-born and the other one is pure blood. And I'm a three-quarter-blood because Mummy's a pure blood and Daddy's half-blood."

"You're a half-blood and that's the end of it," Severus said, annoyed.

"Come to think of it, why does the term Mud-"

"Quintella Lucy Margaret Snape!" her father snarled furiously, hitting the table with his fist. "You know very well that that word is forbidden to be said in this house!"

"I - I'm sorry," Quentin said quietly, looking down. "I forgot."

* * *

"Hey, Harry," Quentin said, entering Harry's bedroom. "Mummy said we'll be going to Diagon Alley tomorrow." Since breakfast she had been awfully quiet.

"What is this word Severus doesn't want ou yo say?" Harry asked, sitting up. He'd been lying on his bed reading _A study in scarlet_.

She sat down next to him and looked around cautiously to make sure no one else was there.

"Mudblood," she whispered in his ear. "It's a swear word for muggle-borns, Harry. It's wha pure bloods sometimes call them, because they think their blood is dirty, like mud."

Harry gasped.

"Daddy doesn't want anyone to say it because - because it reminds him of how he lost your mother," Quentin continued in a whisper. "One time in his fifth year at Hogwarts your father bullied him in front of everyone - the whole school. You see, him and your father were enemies, but both of them loved your mother. I think she'd have chosen Daddy if he - if he hadn't called her the 'M'-word."

"How do you know all this?" Harry asked.

Quentin looked at him with a pained expression. Without saying another word she left his room.


	23. August, 19

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 23: August, 19

"Enter," Severus said as he heard a knock on his study door.

"Hi," Harry said as he half-entered. "I have a question."

"Ask and I'll answer as good as I can," Severus said, closing the boo he'd just been looking at. He put it back in the shelf.

"Is it - is it true that you were - or are - one of Voldemort's followers? And is it - was it partially your fault that - that my parents were - were killed?"

Severus sat down on his chair behind his desk. For a few moments he didn't answer, sitting there in silent. "Yes," he finally said, his voice shaking. "Yes. Both questions are right." He looked up, but Harry had already gone out of the room.

* * *

"Oh, you're so going to love it!" Quentin said as they entered the tube station. She had changed her hair colour to a light brown and her eyes were deep blue. Harry could hardly recognise her. They could have gone via the floo network or by apparition, but Severus had said that it would be best if they travelled the muggle way.

"I'll see it in a sort while," Harry said, though he couldn't wait until he did.

"Here are your tickets," Severus said after he had paid for them. "See ya later."

"Where does he go?" Harry asked irritated as he watched him disappear in the crowd.

"It would be a bit obvious if we would go everywhere like a family," Lucy said, "when Severus isn't supposed to be married."

Half an hour later - it seemed like a decade to both Quentin and Harry - they were at the Leaky Cauldron.

"Didn't you say we'd go to a shopping street?!" Harry exclaimed, looking at the pub.

Quentin giggled. "We have to hide our secrets," she whispered into his ear as she opened the door. "You will see any moment how we hid this."

Still confused Harry entered the pub after her.

There were gasps.

"It's him!" an old lady whispered, pointing at Harry. "It's the Boy-Who-Lived!"

"I - I can't believe I'm meeting you, Mr. Harry Potter," a man said shaking Harry's hand. His voice was shaking with nervousness and disbelieve. "is it really you, Mr. Harry Potter?"

"Y-yes," Harry stammered, shocked at the people's behaviour. He had known that he was famous, but _this_ famous?

"Well, well, well," another man man said, smiling toothless smile. He had a nearly bold head and sunken-in face. "Quentin Wintergarten brings Harry Potter to my pub. Who'd have thought that? And Lucy is here too!"

Quentin grinned, putting her arm around Harry's neck. "'Tis my new little brother, you know?"

A second witch gasped. "But - but - that's impossible! Many people tried to adopt him, but all failed because of Professor Dumbledore! How did you succeed?"

Before Lucy could answer a tall middle-aged man wearing a turban appeared.

"Q-Qu-Quirrel," he stammered, shaking Harry's hand excitedly. "P-Professor Q-Quirrel. I will b-be your DADA t-teacher in the f-following year, M-Mr. Potter. P-Pleased to meet you."

Harry muttered something under his breath, not understanding a word - except that this man was going to be one of his teachers the coming year - from what the man had said.

"C'mon," Quentin said, shoving Harry to the back of the pub. They exited it.

"What are we doing here?" Harry asked, still in shock from the greetings he'd received inside. "Here's nothing but a stone wall and a rubbish bin."

"That's what you think," Lucy smiled, getting her wand out. With it she touched various brick stones of the wall. Harry watched her in irritation. A moment later the wall split into two and gave the way free.

"Whoa," Harry gasped as he stepped into the shopping street. It was as if he had left Planet Earth and gone to a new world - which he actually had.

"This, my dear brother, is Diagon Alley!" Quentin said dramatically.

"First of all we go to Gringotts," Lucy said, pointing at an enormous building at the other end of the street. "That's the wizarding bank, led by goblins."

"Goblins?!"

"Yes, Harry. Here in the magical world we have some very strange creatures."

"Although your parents left you quite a fortune," Lucy said, "Severus and I both agreed that, as you are our adopted son, we will pay for your school things."

"You got your letter?" Quentin asked.

"Yeah," Harry said, pulling the envelope from Hogwarts out of his trouser pocket. She had told him to bring it.

"The second page should be a list of all the things you need," she continued as they walked towards Gringotts.

Fifteen minutes, a few conversations, a wild ride and some explanations to Hary regarding the magical money later they could start their shopping.

"I think you and Harry should get his wand first," Quentin said, looking at the pet shop. "I need to get something done."

Lucy nodded knowingly. "Come on, Harry," she said. "Ollivander makes the best wands here in Britain, he's sue to find one for you."

And she was right. Although it took some time they did find one.

"Here," Ollivander whispered loudly, taking another box containing a wand from his endless shelves. However, he seemed to be even more careful with that one. "Try this one. 11 inches, made of holly and contains a phoenix feather."

Harry took the wand, trying to handle it with as much care as Ollivander had. Suddenly there was a bright light surrounding him, but then it faded away.

Ollivander looked at him, somehow relieved and frightened. "We can expect great things from you," he said. "For this wand has a brother. The brother belongs to who once was the most evil wizard in the magical world."

"You don't mean," Lucy gasped.

"Yes, ma'am, I do," Ollivander said gloomily. "Its brother belongs to You-Know-Who."

Suddenly the door opened and loud screams of an owl could be heard.

"Bring that beast out of my shop!" Ollivander cried.

"Sorry," Quentin muttered. "Here, Harry," she said. "A late birthday present for you. It was the best owl I could find - snow owl called Hedwig."

Harry smiled broadly. "Thanks," he said, taking the cage in which the owl was.

Lucy paid for the wand and they proceeded to the book shop.

"You can each decide on a book you want to read on the train ride," Lucy said as she went off to get the school books.

"Any books you would suggest?" Harry asked as they walked along the shelves.

"_Fantastic beasts and where to find them_, perhaps," she said. "It would give you an insight on some of the beasts we have in the magical world." Harry nodded in reply.

"What are you getting?" he asked.

"A book on legillimency maybe. Daddy won't teach me, so I have to teach myself. Oh, yeah. You don't know. It's kinda like mind-reading. Occlumency is shielding your mind from people entering and legillimency is going into their minds."

"Then I would strongly advice your mother not to buy you that book," a voice behind them said.

"D- Professor Snape!" Quentin exclaimed.

"For I think that your father had reasons not to teach you,"Severus continued. "In my opinion you should stick to _Fantastic beasts and where to find them_, like Mr. Potter here. Maybe then you would finally become better at school knowing that the Kappa is a Japanese water demon and not a _Chinese fire god_."

Quentin blushed. "That was in my first year!" she said.

"As it was in your second, and it will also be in your third and every other year until you leave school. So take my advice." A moment later he had disappeared.

"Does he always do that?" Harry asked after a moment of silence. "Put you down like that, I mean?"

"Professor Snape? Yeah." Harry's heart ached seeing the pain in her eyes at calling her father Professor instead of Daddy. He already loathed Dumbledore.

After they finished their shopping they went out through the Leaky Cauldron (Harry had to shake many hands) and back to the tube station.

"...And from your third year onwards," Quentin told Harry, "you can go to the village on some weekends, Harry. Harry? Harry!" She looked around frantically, but the boy was not to be seen anywhere. "Mummy! Harry's gone!"

"What?!"

"He was here one moment and gone the next!" Quentin cried. She saw her father in the distance and ran over to him.

"Quentin, you know -" he started, but his daughter cut him off.

"Daddy, Harry's gone!"

* * *

Harry looked at the roll on his open palm. "Do I have to?" he asked, grimacing.

"Do it or we won't take you in," a bulky seventeen-year-old boy said. He and his friends - four other thugs - began to chant. "Chicken, chicken, chicken!"

Harry put the roll in his mouth and took the lighter one of the other boys gave him. He lit the roll, sucked at it and breathed smoke out. He coughed. Then he smelled the smoke and exclaimed, "Hemp!"

"Little expert we have here," the first boy smirked. "We can use you."


	24. August, 20

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 24: August, 20

"Remember what we told you?" Andy asked Harry. The day before the young boy had run into him and his friends: Otto, Riley, Connor and Nigel. They were five seventeen-year-old homeless boys and had token Harry in.

"Yes," Harry swallowed. They stood in front of one of the most expensive clothing shops in London. The idea to shoplift didn't appeal to him, but Andy told him it is better than to beg and tell lies.

"Remember," Riley said. "We do this only to stay alive." Harry nodded again and entered the building with Nigel who would play the role of Harry's older brother. It took them few moments to figure out where the changing rooms were, but once they had located them they looked for some clothes which would fit Harry. They found two trousers and a jacket, all three on hangers, and another t-shirt which wasn't on one. Nigel put that between the trousers so that it couldn't be seen and made then with Harry his way over to the changing rooms.

"Three things?" a bored lady asked Harry, and he nodded. She gave him a round bit of plastic on which the number three was printed on. He went into one of the cubicles. Andy had told him that that would happen, that was why Nigel had hid the t-shirt, so that the lady on the entrance to the changing rooms would think he had less clothes to try on than he actually had.

Harry pulled the shirt he was wearing off, tore the price label off the unpaid t-shirt, made sure there were no other security labels on it and then put it on, his original shirt on top after that. He waited a few moments and went out again. He hoped no one would notice. He gave the three hangers with clothes on to the lady and went over to where Nigel was waiting.

"Nothing?" Nigel asked. Harry shook his head, even more nervous than before. The two went out of the shop.

"And?" Andy asked as soon as they were a few hundred meter away from the building.

Harry pulled his t-shirt up a bit so that the older boy could see the t-shirt beneath.

"Good job," Andy smiled. "I told ya boys, we got here a pure genius!"

Harry faked a smile. He had a bad feeling about what would happen because of this.

Later, after they had hot dogs for lunch, they sat down.

"Why did you run away?" Andy asked Harry.

"Found out my adoptive father was responsible for my parents death," Harry answered.

Otto raised his eyebrows. "Killed 'em?"

Harry shook his head. "Told their killers their whereabouts."

"We five ran away 'cos our old men... beat us up every chance they got," Connor explained.

Harry stayed silent for a moment before he asked, "Why didn't you ask me these questions earlier?

Andy grinned. "That hemp smoking was just to see if you were a coward. That shirt you stole showed you're born to be one of us."

"Where did you get the hemp?"

"We got our secrets and you got yours," Nigel shook his head. "That makes it even. Anyway, you guess they're gonna look for you?"

Harry nodded. "Def," he said.

"How far will they go? Telvision?"

Harry shrugged. "Maybe."

"Then we'd better hurry up," Andy said, standing up. "I think there are some lady scarfs waiting for us."


	25. August, 21

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 25: August, 21

"It's all my fault!" Quentin sobbed. She and her parents were in Professor Dumbledore's office at Hogwarts, discussing what to do. "If hadn't been talking so much -"

"Quentin, calm down," Severus snapped, pacing back and forth. "Many things could have happned. Maybe he was kidnapped like you say, maybe he just ran away again."

"Why would he do that?" Lucy asked. Her husband looked at her with a pained expression, and she understood instantly. She gasped. "You haven't -"

Severus nodded. "He asked me."

"It's my fault!" Quentin wailed. "If I - If I hadn't told him -"

"Told him what?" Albus asked sharply, abruptly looking up at her. He had been sitting in his chair thinking the whole time.

"W-when Daddy gave me occlumency lessons," Quentin started, "he - he was one time not concentrating, and I entered his mind." She started sobbing again, tears streaming down her cheeks which were abnormally red. "I told Harry about what I saw then, and then on the way back from Holland he - he and I talked. About everything. That's - that's when he asked me if it could be possible that Daddy is partially responsible for his parents' death!"

"Oh my god," Lucy gasped. "We've gotta do something! What if he runs into some thugs in London on his way to find his friends?"

"His friends!" Severus exclaimed. "That's it! Maybe they know something!"

* * *

"Where do we sell all this stuff?" Harry asked, looking down on the t-shirt, three women scarfs and the pair of jeans he'd stolen.

"To a friend of ours who sells it to people," Andy answered. "With him we can earn up to double the price which we'd have paid for them if we hadn't stolen them."

Harry whistled. "So up to fifty pounds four the jeans alone."

"See?" Andy grinned, patting Harry's head. "Good at maths as well."

"So, where lives that friend of yours?"

"He doesn't live nowhere," Connor said. "He moves around all the time. One time he's there, and one time he's somewhere else."

"Then how do you know where to find him?" Harry asked irritated.

"We don't find him, he finds us,"Nigel replied.

"Which means?"

"We've gotta do no more than wait here for him," Otto explained.

They waited for over an hour before a beggar came towards them.

"What'ya got?" he asked.

Andy handed over a bag in which the stolen clothes were.

"This everything?"

"Yes."

"Who's that boy," the beggar asked harshly.

Suddenly there was a cry. "Harry!" a voice yelled.

Harry, Andy, Nigel, Otto, Connor, Riley and the beggar turned to look. Henry, Francis, Frederick and Emmett stood a hundred meters away from them.

"What the fuck?" Riley exclaimed. Before Harry could react he and the others had disappeared.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" Henry yelled. "And with these people?"

"Why should it interest you?" Harry shouted.

"You know who these people actually are?" Francis hissed. "They are drug dealers! Shop lifters! Criminals!"

"Where are your guardians?" Frederick questioned.

"Or did you run away again?" Emmett mocked.

"It's none of your business," Harry sneered as he stood up.

"Where do you think you're going?" Henry snarled as he grabbed Harry's shoulder. "I think I've had enough of your stupid behaviour. You're coming with us. Your guardians are probably worried sick."

"I can take care of myself!" Harry shouted.

"Don't be foolish!" Emmett exclaimed. "You'll never survive in a city like London on your own! It's hard for us to get by, and we're four people!"

"Maybe it's because you _beg_ for money," Harry hissed.

"And you think stealing is so much better?" Henry asked disbelievingly. "It's against the law."

"What do I care?"

"Sooner or later you'll get arrested, get a criminal record," Frederick said.

"Don't care."

"Don't be stupid," Francis said. "Once you got one of them you practically ruined your life."

"Well, you got one if you know it so good?" Harry asked cheekily.

"Why you little -" Francis shouted as he threw himself upon Harry and started beating him in the stomach and in the face.

"Stop it you two!" Henry yelled, trying to get the apart. Emmett and Frederick helped as much as they could. When they managed to get Francis off Harry the younger boy got up instantly, and, holding his bleeding nose and his hurting stomach, he stumbled away.


	26. August, 22

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 26: August, 22

The day before Harry had sat down in a passageway, not caring what was going to happen to him. No one had passed his way since.

It had started to rain late evening. His whole body was on fire with pain, and the rain drops thundered down on him. Minutes later they were soaing wet, sticking to his body. The whole night he'd sat there, not moving a muscle.

In the early morning hours it had stopped to rain. The sun had come out, but hadn't lifted Harry's mood.

As he looked into a puddle next to him he couldn't recognise the face which was staring back. Dirty, blood smeared all over it, water drippling down hi forehead, cheeks. He couldn't help but smile.

"Oh man, in what situation have I brought myself in?" he muttered. "One day I'm nothing, then suddenly I'm a famous child model. On the third day I'm homeless, on the fourth I'm adopted, on the fifth I find myself in Holland, on the sixth everyone is eager to meet me, the Boy-Who-Lived, and on the seventh I'm destined to die."

He was too exhausted. He couldn't help but close his eyes and fall asleep.

* * *

A/N: Check out www. fanbbs. net (it's a forum about fan-works and fan-culture in general, to discuss about anything made by fans [mainly fanfiction, of course]).


	27. August, 23

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 27: August, 23

As soon as Harry opened his eyes he knew he was in his bedroom in the Snapes' villa. As he reached over to the bedside table to get his glasses his hands felt something big, something book-like. On top of it were his glasses. He put them on and then took the book to see what it was.

A photo album.

As he turned the pages his eyes filled with tears. There were photos, photos of his parents, photos of him and them. To his great surprise the people in them were moving, waving at him, smiling. But then he thought what Quentin would tell him if he voiced his thoughts in her presence.

_Harry, in the magical world hardly anything is impossible_.

Then, as he came to the last page, there was a photo which had been token in Holland. It was of him, her, Lucy and Severus. He sniffed, hardly able to keep the tears back. How worried they must have been. Then he burst out in tears. He cried his heart out. He cried over his parents, over the stupid things he had done, over the fact that even now Severus and Lucy still wanted to have him as a son.

And then, when there were no more tears to come, when there was nothing else to cry about, he fell asleep.

_He found himself in a room of white. The walls were snow white, the ceiling and floor too. There was no furniture. Everything was so white, so clean that it nearly blinded him._

_Suddenly two people appeared, a man and a woman._

_"Harry," the female said._

_"M-Mum?!" Harry exclaimed, thinking he recognized her from the photos he had seen. "Dad?!"_

_"Yes, my son," the man replied. He smiled, but then his smile faded away and he looked sternly at Harry. "You did some pretty stupid things in the past weeks."_

_"I know," Harry said. "I know, and I'm sorry about it."_

_"You do not have to tell us," his mother said, hugging him. "Tell him. Tell Severus. It's him and his family you should apologize to."_

_"I don't want you to leave," Harry suddenly blurted out, clinging on to her. "I want to stay with you."_

_"It's not your time yet," his father said, shaking his head. "But always keep in mind that we love you and that we watch you from here."_

_"We're proud of you," his mother said, kissing Harry's forehead. Harry felt her slowly fade out. _

_"I love you," he muttered. "I love you, Mum, Dad!" And then they were gone._


	28. August, 24

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 28: August, 24

The next time Harry woke up Quentin was with him, half lying on his bed, half sitting on the floor, deeply asleep. As he suddenly got a coughing fit she woke up.

"Oh, Harry!" she gasped.

"Please don't be mad with me," he begged once he stopped coughing.

"How could I?" she whispered, hugging him tightly. "How could I ever be mad with you?"

Suddenly there were noises outside Harry's bedroom.

"I demand to see him instantly!" a voice Harry knew so well roared. "I have been waiting here for THREE hours!"

"U-Uncle Vernon?" Harry breathed, looking at Quentin, confused.

She nodded, looking at him with a sad expression. "He and your aunt came three hours ago. They want to talk to you for one reason or another."

"I told you, he's asleep! You can't talk to him now!" Severus yelled.

However, the door flew open a moment later and Vernon Dursley stormed in.

"Ha!" he laughed, seeing Harry wide awake. "Ha, ha, ha! Of course he's asleep! How couldn't he be talking with that damn girl of yours." He turned to look at Harry. "You're coming with us, boy. Ted needs you for some photos."

But Harry didn't move.

"Are you deaf? We're taking you home!"

And then Harry said something that neither Quentin, who still sat on the floor next to him, Severus, who stood outside the door, nor Lucy who was behind Severus would have thought he'd say. "This is my home."

"WHAT?!" Vernon exclaimed. "You can't be serious. You say this dump is your home? What about Privet Drive? THAT is your home. Get up and get dressed, we're going."

"Did you not hear?" Harry asked quietly. "I said this is my home."

"Come, Vernon," Petunia said to her husband. "If he wants to stay, then let him."

"But what about the money?" Vernon cried.

Harry snorted. "The money I earned and you bedazzled? Come on. From every photo shot you took, like, a hundred pounds for yourself."

Vernon faked a smile, trying to stay calm. "Then why _wouldn't_ you come with us?"

"Because my whole life you made me believe I wasn't worth anything!" Harry suddenly screamed. Suddenly he started gasping for air.

"Harry!" Quentin shrieked as his head fell upon his pillow, unconscious.

* * *

When Harry woke up he felt something cold on his forehead. But he didn't had time to think about it. He started coughing, and as he moved his hand away from his mouth he saw something red upon his palm. Blood.


	29. August, 25

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 29: August, 25

"How did you actually find me?" Harry questioned Quentin. Since the sudden visit of his relatives yesterday she was the only one he had seen, but he didn't tell her about the blood he had coughed up. He didn't want to worry her any more than he had to.

Quentin shrugged, placing a bowl of hit broth on his bedside table. "We found your friends. They told us where they saw you next. Daddy nearly killed that one boy when he admitted that he beat you up. But once we found the place it was kinda easy really. I mean, in your state you couldn't have gone very far."

"But I'll still be able to go on the Hogwarts Express?" Harry asked anxiously, starting to eat.

Quentin eyed him. "Maybe," she said. "Maybe not. If Madam Pomfrey thinks you're healthy enough - which she probably won't. If she doesn't then you're gonna have to go with Daddy when he goes. However, that way you have a whole day to get used to the surroundings, something the other students in your year group won't have. Which also means you have no excuse for being late."

"Who is this Madam- Pomfrey you called her?"

"Yeah, Madam Pomfrey. She's the healer at Hogwarts, something like a school nurse in the muggle world I think."

"How did she heal my nose so fast and good?" Harry continued to ask, touching his nose as if it was a precious porcelain tea set which could break any minute. It was as if it had fallen off and grown new.

"Potion. Daddy makes potions the whole time for her."

Harry sighed. "So many new things. I wonder how I'll cope at Hogwarts."

"You won't be the only one," Quentin promisd. "Muggle borns don't know anything, and at least you know _something_."

Harry smiled. "Yes, you're right."

"So, any idea in which house you'll be?" Quentin asked, sitting down on his bed.

Harry shrugged. "Dunno. I don't think I'm smart enough for Ravenclaw, too much of a coward for Gryffindor, and not evil enough for Slytherin."

Quentin exploded in laughter. "You'll _never_ be a Hufflepuff!" she exclaimed. "Forget that idea immediately." She looked thoroughly at him. "I say you're gonna be in Gryffindor."

"You really think so?" Harry asked amazed.

Quetin nodded. "After the many times you ran away the hat's gonna have to place you there!"

"Hat?!"

"Yeah," Quentin said hastily, cursing herself for chattering too much once again. "The hat. It makes you do... a quiz! Yes, a quiz. And from the answers you give him he decides... what your personality type is. And after that you're finally sorted. But don't think too much of it now. You'll see it for real soon enough."

Harry shrugged, placing the bowl back on the bedside table. "But why Gryffindor?"

She smirked as she stod up to bring it back downstairs.

"Gryffindors are known for their bravery and stupidity."


	30. August, 26

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 30: August, 26

Harry opened his eyes and looked around his dark bedroom. It was in the middle of the night, probably shortly before midnight. Something had woken him up, but what? He grabbed his glasses and put them on. Then he slipped out of bed. It was weird walking after spending the last few days in bed. He went over to the window and looked out onto the Night-London. It was totally different than the Day-London. It was... scary. He thought about Henry and the others. Without them he'd probably be dead. He thought about what they'd do once it got colder. Go back to their children's home? Surely not. It had been their decision to run away, and he knew they'd never willingly agree to go back. What would they do on Christmas? Buy each other presents? No. They didn't have the money for that. Treat themselves to a little Christmas dinner? Probably not. They had to save everything they could, spend as little as possible, stretch every penny as far as possible. It was their way to survive, the way they had chosen.

Suddenly his mind wandered to Abigail. One night she had coughed up blood. Henry had said something about tuberculosis after her death, Harry remembered. What if he had caught it from her? What if he too was dying? No, Harry said to himself. It probablas justn after-effect from the beating. No need to worry.


	31. August, 27

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 30: August, 27

As Quentin came in to bring him his breakfast he didn't tell her about waking up during the night. After all he wasn't actually allowed to leave his bed.

"Slept good?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"You seem to recover pretty fast," Quentin commented, watching him wolf down the fried eggs and toast. "Maybe she'll let you go on the express after all."

Harry shrugged carelessly. "Who knows?" He stopped eating. "Tell me about some of the children I will go to school with."

"Well, of coursthere's Draco," Quentin began. "He's a bit shorter than you and looks quite like a ferret, but don't tell him I said that!" She laughed. "Then there are Ronald and Ginevra Weasley*. Ronald's birthday is on September 2, but Dumbledore wouldn't allow him to start Hogwarts last year because if you're born after August 31 you have to wait another year. I can remember there being a huge row between the Weasleys and Dumbledore and the teachers. Finally the Minister, who was quite annoyed to be involved, decided that Ronald has to go in the same year as his little sister, Ginevra, who's birthday is on August 9."

"Who else?" Harry questioned, listenting intensively.

"Uh, Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crab. They're two imbeciles. Draco treats them kinda like servants and they're his bodyguards, but, in fact, that's all they're good for to be honest."

"What about the teachers?"

"Daddy is the most disliked, at least by everyone who isn't in Slytherin. He treats us Ravenclaws and the Hufflepuff like idiots, but Gryffindor has it way worse, probably because he hates Gryffindor because of your father but at the same time loves it because of your mother. Then there's Professor McGonnagall. She's very strict but kinda favours the Gryffindors for she's their Head of House. But then, every Head of House favours their house, especially Daddy. So the other teachers have to somehow make up with Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor for the loss of points they get in potions, and for the amount of points the Slytherins get in that subject.

"The History of Magic professor is a ghost. He makes the subject totally boring by talking on and on about things you don't really need to know and even less understand, but once you start reading about the same thing in a book, you totally can't stop because it's so fascinating.

"Madam Hooch teaches the first years to flies brooms. She's strict like Professor McGonnagal, but then she has to be because she's the referee for Quidditch."

"Quidditch?"

"A game played in the broom high in the air," Quentin said, chatting happily about everything. She explained everything about it, the roles of the different players and the balls, the rules and fouls. "And," she said, gasping for air for she hadn't done nothing but talk for the last few minutes, "I'm beater on the Ravenclaw team since last year."

"Wow!" Harry exclaimed, amazed. "Had any injuries?"

"You bet," Quentin laughed. "Broken arm, rib, concussion, bruises, a broken nose..."

"And all in one year?!"

"Yeah. Broke my arm and rib during training when I first started, got the concussion during my very first game, the broken nose during the final game of the season and the bruises came naturally. But it's worse when you're a seeker because nearly everyone tries to knock you out."

"And Severus still lets you play???"

"No, but I'm quite good at throwing tantrums." Quentin exploded in laughter. "After I broke my arm he threatened to tie me up and watch over me during practice and the games, but I screamed down the whole castle and Dumbledore somehow managed to change his mind because no one had been able to get a minute of rest."

"How did you manage to scream down the _whole castle_?"

"I used a charm to make my voice louder and one to produce echoes," Quentin said. "So when I started screaming it could be heard about a few hundred meters away from where I was, but with the echoes, whenever I stopped, my scream would just start at the other end of the castle, and then I'd start again and so on."

Harry couldn't help giggling as he put the empty plate on his bedside table and took the glass of water. e gulped the liquid down. "Sounds funny."

"Yes, but not when you're trying to sleep. Daddy tried putting a silence spell on me but somehow it didn't work, maybe because I was too loud for it?"

"Too loud?" Severus snorted as he entered. "More a fact of me not being to concentrate because _someone_ didn't let _anyone_ in the castle sleep."

Quentin shook her head as her father took the plate and glass from Harry's beside table.. "Excuses, excuses. Nothing but excuses."

* * *

* I aged both Ronald and Ginny for the plot of the story


	32. August, 28

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 32: August, 28

"Mummy's just got a letter from Professor Dumbledore!" Quentin exclaimed, bursting into Harry's room. He was in bed reading _Fantastic beasts and where to find them_ for the second time.

"Concerning what?"

"Thing is," Quentin said, "she's an actress, y'know? Acting in muggle movies under the name Dawn Evans. There is a new movie going to be filmed in a month, and she got the lead part, but now Professor Dumbledore wants her to ditch the role and become the Muggle Studies teacher at Hogwarts. Of course she's not happy. She loves acting, y'know? So Daddy suggested that maybe Dumbledore could started a new subject instead of having Muggle Studies - Drama - so that Mummy can teach that, but she says he'd never do such a thing. So either she ignores Professor Dumbledore and acts in her movie and she ditches her role and becomes a teacher at Hogwarts, but she wants to neither give up acting nor disappoint the headmaster."

"Wait a minute," Harry said. "Didn't you say that Lucy is a pureblood? Would other pureblood families even approve of her teaching _Muggle_ Studies?"

Quentin shrugged. "There's a bit of a shortage of teachers, so the other purebloods would probably suggest cancelling that subject, but Professor Dumbledore is a muggle-lover and would rather have a pureblood teaching it than to have to give it up."

"Can't she refuse? I mean, it's not like she can suddenly say she can't act in that movie because she got offered a teaching post, can she?"

"But she also can't say as a pureblood that she can't take the job because she has muggle work. Thing of the scandal!"

"Then what does everyone think she's working as?"

"They don't. Apparently her husband and my father got killed, leaving us with more than enough money to live off."

"How many lies to you all have to tell to make it a secret that Severus is your father?" Harry asked, shaking his head.

Quentin looked saddened at him. "My life's practically built on lies. When I was born Daddy and Mummy had the choice between saying that I was his daughter and that my mum died giving birth to me or saying that I was her daughter and that my father got killed, and they decided it'd be safer for me to be her daughter. As long as I didn't go to Hogwarts things were kinda okay because at home or at the Malfoy's I didn't have to pretend, but when I started going to Hogwarts I had to be careful not to let a single word slip about me being his daughter."

"So, what d'you think Lucy's gonna do?" Harry asked after a moment of silence.

Quentin shrugged. "She's probably going to have to take the teaching post I think."


	33. August, 29

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 33: August, 29

"Madam Promfrey's gonna come in two days to check you up," Quentin said as she brought him his breakfast. "She just came through the floo."

Harry nodded. He was quite excited to meet this doctor - healer. But at the same time he noticed a change in Quentin. She had become quieter and looked saddened. Maybe it was because there were only three days left before she had to stop calling her father Daddy for many months.

"So, did Lucy decide?" Harry asked. During the night he had woken up again, and again he had looked out onto the Night-London, wondering what would become of Henry, Fredrick, Emmett and Francis during the winter.

Quentin nodded sadly. "She's taking the teaching post. Her heart's broken though because she's got to stop acting."

"What a pity," Harry sighed. "There's probably a talent going to waste."

"Well, there's nothing to be done," she said. "Now eat. You'll need all your strength if you want to Madam Pomfrey to let you on the train."

* * *

A/N: Shall I just write about his first year or put all seven years into one? (Either way the ending will be the same.)


	34. August, 30

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 34: August, 30

Again Harry woke up in the middle of the night. He tried to figure out what had woken him up. He listened if there were any noise in the house. Outside it was pouring down, the rain drops thundering against the window.

"Two days," he whispered, staring up at the ceiling. "In two days I'll know. I'll know in which house I'll be." Before he knew it he hd fallen asleep again.

When he woke up again it was till raining cats and dogs, but the sky had lightened up a bit.

"Better eat everything," Quentin said cheerily as sh brought him his breakfast half-an-hour later. "Tomorrow Madam Pomfrey is coming, and I'm sure you want to convince her you're fit enough to go on the Hogwarts Express.


	35. August, 31

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 35: August, 31

Madam Pomfrey was a middle-seized, plump old lady. To Harry she seemed to be pretty nice. After she checked him up she went to talk to Severus and Lucy. Minutes later Quentin came into Harry's bedroom.

"And?" he asked. It had been nerv-racking to wait for an answer.

Quentin nodded, smiling broadly. "Yes, you can get on the Hogwarts Express, but she said that I'll have to watch over you in case your condition changes from one moment to the next drastically." She turned to go back out. "Oh, yeah. Lunch is in an hour. Daddy expects you to come down."


	36. September, 1 A

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 36: September, 1 A

A/N: I am deeply sorry for these abnormally short chapters, but I haven't had much time to write as I had to get all my things for school. Hope you like this one. I'm splitting September 1 in two because I think it's easier than write everything into one chapter

* * *

"Harry calm down!" Lucy exclaimed. "Normally you never fidget like that! Calm down and eat your breakfast, otherwise we'll be late for the train!"

Quentin who had already changed her appearance wrinkled her nose. "You do still look awfully pale," she commented.

"I can't help it," Harry replied, ignoring Quentin. "I'm nervous nd excited. I can't wait to go on the train!"

Severus looked on the wall clock. "If all of you don't hurry up you'll miss the train. It's already ten o'clock."

"Finished!" Quentin said, pushing her half-full plate away.

"Quintella," Lucy said. "Finish eating. Your plate is still half-full."

"Half-empty," Quentin corrected cheekily.

Severus rolled his eyes. "It doesn't matter if it is half-empty or half-full, you won't be going until it's _totally_ empty, and the same goes for you, Harry."

Harry grunted, eating the fried egg Lucy had put on his plate. He was so excited he could hardly eat a thing.

Severus cleared his throat. "Quentin, could you come outside a minute?"

She nodded and followed him out of the dining room.

Lucy looked at Harry's plate.

"Doesn't seem like you're going to eat much more," she commented. Harry nodded.

Minutes later Quentin came back in, rubbing her blood-shot eye. It was clear that she had been crying.

"Daddy just flooed to Hogwarts," she said quietly.

"Then we'd better go too," Lucy said. "I bring you to the platform and afterwards apparate to Hogwarts."

"Appa- what?" Harry asked irritated. It was another magical word he didn't understand.

"I'll explain later," Quentin replied.

Quarter past ten they stood outside the house.

"How are we going to get to the train station?" Harry asked.

"The ministry lets us drive in one o their cars," Lucy replied. "The minister thought it better for you."

Just like she had said a middle-seized car appeared moments later up the hill. A uniformed driver got out. He helped Quentin and Harry to put their trunks and Hedwig's cage into the trunk.

"Wow," Harry muttered as he sat down on the back seat. "'Tis a lot bigger then I expected."

Quentin shrugged carelessly. "Spells."

They started their journey towards King's Cross. They reached their destination shortly after twenty to eleven. The driver unloaded the trunks and the cage and put them onto luggage trolleys. Then he nodded his good-byes and drove away again.

"Which platform?" Harry asked, steering his trolley towards the entrance of the station.

"9 3/4," Lucy answered. At Harry's confused face she couldn't help but smile. "You'll see in a few minutes."

They made their way past platforms 1-8, numerous shops and then went into the attached building in which platforms 9 and 10 were.

"Where's here a platform 9 3/4 or whatever number it was?" Harry asked irritated, looking around.

"Easy," Quentin said. She steered her trolley towards one of the wall bits between platform nine and ten.

"What the hell do you do?" Harry gasped as she started running. A moment later she disappeared.

"Now you," Lucy said, giving him an encouraging push.

Harry looked disbelievingly at her, but then he too steered his trolley towards where Quentin had disappeared.

_I'm going to crash into the wall_, he thought, his eyes tightly closed. _I'm going to crash, I'm going to crash!_

Instead of crashing however he felt a sudden difference in temperature. As he opened his eyes he couldn't believe what he saw. He was on a platform, Platform 9 3/4 he read on a shield.

"There you are," Quentin smiled. "Thought you'd never come." Behind Harry Lucy appeared.

"You've got roughly ten minutes," Lucy said. "Better hurry up I'd say." She followed the children towards one of the doors and helped them load their luggage on. They talked some more, said their good-byes, and then a loud whistle sounded, the doors closed and the train started moving.

"Until this evening!" Quentin yelled, waving to her mother a last time. "Wait here," she said as she started walking into one direction. Seconds later she came back. "There's an empty compartment. Help me get the luggage in there, then I'll look for Audrey and Draco."

So, five minutes later the luggage was stored away and Quentin had begun her search for the Malfoys. Harry took out the photo album out of his trunk and started looking through it again, staring at the pictures of his parents.

Suddenly the compartment door opened. He looked up, expecting it to be Quentin.

"I-Is there a place for me and my sister?" a red-head stammered, looking in. Harry guessed that he too was a first year, and then he remembered Severus' description of the Weasleys. Red hair. However, he didn't want to seem rude so Harry nodded, and the boy and a girl entered. The Weasleys. Ronald and Ginevra.

"I'm Ronald Weasley," Ronald said once he had stored his luggage away. "But everyone calls me Ron." He didn't lift a finger to help his yonger sister who struggled doing so, so Harry got up and helped her.

"Ginevra," she said quietly. "But call me Ginny."

"Take no notice of her," Ronald said loudly. "It's like, I can't believe Dumbledore makes me be in the same year as her! That's like having a twin, only that it's your younger sibling ad that makes it even worse!"

"I'm Harry," Harry said. "Harry Potter."

"_The_Harry Potter?" Ron gasped, spraying spit through the whole compartment. "_The_ Boy-Who-Lived."

Harry nodded, somehow disgusted.

The doors opened again and Quentin entered.

"Harry, I found," she started, but stopped herself when she saw the Weasleys.

"What's the matter?" a female voice behind her asked. "Why are you not going on, Quentin?" A pale face appeared over her shoulder. It was framed by long, so blond it was nearly silver hair, and a pair of two grayish-blue eyes which mustered the people sitting in the compartment thoroughly. A boy pushed Quentin aside. He looked similar to his sister's face.

"Weaslys," he snorted. "What are you doing here?"

"_Harry Potter_let us in here," Ronald sneered. "Malfoy."

"Unfortunately these seats were reserved for my sister and me by your Harry Potter," Draco Malfoy snarled. "So get out here."

"Hey, hey, hey," Hary said, standing up. "There is exactly one seat f each of us, we can all stay in here."

"I'm not sitting with a Malfoy," Ron snarled, standing up. He pushed Draco, Quentin and Audrey out of the way and vanished.

"Can I stay here?" Ginny whispered anxiously.

Draco shrugged. "You're a Weasley but as long as you're quiet I don't have anything against _you_, other than your stupid brothers."

It was a bit uncomfortable with five people in the compartment, but everyone forgot about that as Quentin and Harry started telling about Holland. The whole time Ginny sat in her seat next to the door, reading a book which half fell apart. She didn't make any sound.

Suddenly the doors opened. Ronald Weasley, his head and ears as red as ripe cherries, entered. "Forgot my trunk," he muttered.

"Watch where you put your stinking feet!" Draco exclaimed as the redhead stepped onto his foot.

After some more yell of pain and muttered excuses Weasley let again.

Draco shook his head.

"Really," he said, speaking to Ginny. "I cannot believe how your mother can cope with him, Weasley. He's as loud as a hurricane and leaves the same mess behind. You on the other hand are quiet and haven't even moved an inch since we entered!"

Ginny blushed at the praise, but she stayed silent.

When the lady with the sweet trolley came Audrey and Quentin, ho had both received money from their fathers, bought sweets for everyone, and Harry gave some to Ginny who only reluctantly accepted them.

"You need to be careful with that," Draco said as Harry ripped a packet of chocolate frogs open. "They've got one jump to live and they use it as best as they can."

Before Harry could react the brown frog had leapt out of the packaging and jumped through the half-open window.

"Happened to me the first time as well," Quentin shrugged. "Which person do you have?"

Harry turned the cardboard card around. "Albus Dumbledore," he read.

Draco grunted. "Got that coot thirteen times already. Threw every single one away, but they see to keep coming back to me." He too took a chocolate frog. Slowly he opened the package and grabbed the frog midair as it jumped away. He bit off the head. "See?" he said, showing the back of the card. "Dumbledore."

"Maybe you should stop throwing them away then," Audrey suggested.

"I do not need that old muggle-lover," her brother replied.

"My Mum says he's a great wizard," Ginny whispered.

Quentin shrugged. "My parents say the same, but I personally could do without him."

Audrey looked at her knowingly.

Draco looked out of the window. "I guess we're half-way there," he said after a while.

"When do we get changed into uniform?" Harry asked.

"About half an hour before we arrive at Hogsmeade," Audrey answered. "From there Quentin and I'll take the carriages while you, Draco and the Weasley girl take the boats."

"Do you have to call her that?" Harry asked. "She _does_ have a name you know." From the corner of her eyes he could see that Ginny's head and ears had reddened in embarrassment. He guessed she wasn't used to being the center of attention.

Audrey rolled her eyes. "_Fine_. You, Draco and _Ginevra_ take the boats."

"Anyway what house d'you think you're gonna be in?" Draci asked to change the subject. "I'm definitely in Slytherin."

"Quentin reckons I'll be in Gryffindor," Harry said.

Draco looked expectantly at Ginny.

"Oh - er...," she stammered. "G-Gryffindor, too - I think."

"Where's the toilet?" Harry asked, standing up.

"Back end of the train," Quentin said, grabbing a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. She looked through it before she took one. "Draco, I dare you to eat this."

Without thinking the boy took it and swallowed it.

As Harry exited the compartment he could hear Draco making noise as if he was ging to throw up.

"Spider gut!" Draco gasped, and then the door fell shut.

Harry made his way past many different compartments. Some students already had their uniform on. In one compartment there was Ronald and two older boys who looked like him and Harry guessed that they were twins, together with a third boy. He was making wild hand movements while talking, and the twins laughed loudly. Then one of them gave something to Ron. He eyed whatever it was that lay on his open palm, then put it in his mouth and began to chew. a moment later his skin and hair changed colour. Yelling something he stormed out of the apartment, right into Harry.

"Oh - hey," he said, startled. Then he laughed. "Had enough of my stupid sister, Malfoys and that Wintergarten girl?"

"No, I have not," Harry said icily. "And that _Wintergarten girl_ as you called her is my adoptive sister."

Ronald paled but you couldn't see the difference with his red skin as he, a moment later, reddened with embarrassment. "Oh - I-I'm sorry."

"Course you are," Harry sneered, continuing his way to the toilet.

As he was washing his hands someone tapped his shoulder.

"I'm Percy Weasley," a boy said.

How many kids to the Weasleys have? Harry thought, annoyed, as he shook Percy's hand.

"You shouldn't take care of what my little brother says," Percy continued. "He's an imbecile. Ginevra - as I saw she is in your compartment - is a better influence on you for sure if you should come to Gryffindor too." Harry saw that Percy already had his uniform on. His tie was red and a lion was on it. Gryffindor.

Harry nodded slowly.

"Of course," the older boy continued, "if you have any questions you can always ask me. I would be delighted to help you find your way around Hogwarts."

"Thanks, but I'm sure I'll manage," Harry said as he left the toilets.

As he came back to his compartment there was a girl with bushy brown hair standing in the doorway.

"How often do I have to tell you?" Draco's voice could be heard. He sounded annoyed. "There is no toad in here!"

"I was only asking," the girl snapped, walking away.

"What was that about?" Harry questioned as he sat down.

"Only some idiot having lost his pet toad," Audrey replied. "Nothing to worry about."

The rest of the travel time passed away gradually. About half an hour before they arrived the girls made Draco and Harry wait outside while they were changing. They heard some talking going on inside.

"Ginevra, you can't really enter the Great Hall in those," Audrey said. Ginny replied something neither of the boys could hear. Then Quentin muttered something. A moment later she opened the door.

"You can get changed," she said.

As Harry saw Ginny she smiled broadly.

"Fixed her uniform with some spells," Quentin muttered in his ear.

After the boys had changed all of them noticed that the train lost speed.

"We must be pretty near now," Audrey commented, looking out of the window. But it was already too dark to see much.

With a lot of noise the Hogwarts Express came to a halt. They all left the compartment and went off the train.

"Firs' Years over here!" an enormous man yelled above all the chatter, waving a gas lamp around. "Firs' Years over here!"

"See ya later," Quentin said as she and Audrey made their way over to the carriages while Ginny, Harry and Draco went over to the half-giant.

"That's the grounds keeper," Draco told Harry.

"'Tis all of yer?" the grounds keeper asked as no other students came towards him. "Then come with me." They walked out of the village and up a small hill until they reached the shores of a lake. there were eight boats there. The half-giant stepped into the first one. "'Bout six of yer in a boat!" he yelled over to the first years who slowly divided themselves into six groups of six and one group of five. Harry, Draco, Ginny, the bushy-haired girl from earlier, Ronald and another boy shared one boat. As soon as everyone was seated they set off across the lake towards the school.

"Whoa!"

"Wow!"

"Look at that!"

"Isn't it amazing?"

That and a lot more did the First Years exclaimed when they got the first sight of the castle.

"You know," the bushy-haired girl whispered, "Hogwarts is one of the most famous wizarding schools on the world. Children sometimes even travel abroad just to go here." Harry thought about Tony.

"No one is interested," Draco snarled, looking with big eyes at the school.

Minutes later they arrived at some kind of harbour where they went off the boats. The grounds keeper led them towards the school gate and along the school grounds to the main entrance. There was an old lady waiting for them all. With her hair in a bun and her old looks she seemed to be pretty strict. Harry remembered what Quentin had said. _Professor McGonnagall is strict and you'd better stay on her good side_.

"I'm Professor McGonnagall," the woman said. Harry couldn't help but smile. Maybe one day he would be able to solve crimes like Sherlock Holmes.

"Is there anything funny about that Mr. Potter?" Professor McGonnagall asked.

"No, Professor," he replied.

"Then I suggest you should wipe that smile off your face," she said as she turned around on her heels. She led them away into a small, dark room. "I will come back when everything is ready for you," she said.

Harry felt someone clinging onto his arm. When his eyes adjusted to the darkness he could make out Ginny.

"I'm scared of the dark," she whispered apologetically.

And then it began.


	37. September, 1 B

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 36: September, 1 B

All the girls screamed their lungs out as a dozen or so ghosts entered through the walls and flew around the room. The boys too were scared at first, but they'd never admit that. Harry could feel his arm slowly growing numb, Ginny had grabbed it so hard. But he didn't care as long as it comforted her. Beside him he could make Draco out staring at the ghosts fascinated.

"Welcome in Gryffindor!" one of the ghosts howled. "I'm the House Ghost of Hufflepuff, the Fat Monk!"

"Hoohooo!" another one shouted. He lifted his head off as good as he could, but it only wen half-way.

"That's the Nearly-Headless Nick," Ronald whispered. "Fred and George told me 'bout him."

"I do very much prefer to be called Sir Nicholas de Mimsy Porpington," the Nearly-Headless Nick pouted.

"The Bloody Baron!" Draco exclaimed excitedly, seeing the House Ghost of Slytherin.

"Aha!" the baron said. "A true Slytherin like your father!"

The door to the room opened again and Professor McGonnagall came in.

"I see you already met the ghosts," she said dryly as the ghosts disappeared through the walls. "Well, now. Everything is ready for you." She turned around on her heels and the First Years followed her out. As the stood in front of two enormous wooden doors the professor waited a moment before she flicked her wand and the doors swung open magically.

The exclaims of amazement were even bigger when the eleven-year-olds entered the Great Hall.

"You know," the girl with the bushy brown hair breathed to no one in particular, "the ceiling is jinxed so that it always shows the weather outside without actually being inside, so if it rains you can see it on the ceiling but it doesn't actually rain inside."

"No one cares," Draco grunted s they walked along beside the house tales. At the other end of the hall was the teacher table standing on a podium. Harry could see Severus, Lucy, that Quirrel character from the Leaky Cauldron and the groundskeeper. The others were all strangers to him.

In front of the teacher table stood a chair. On top of it was a hat. Harry remembered Quentin saying something about a hat putting him into the houses. Suddenly a mouth-like opening opened and the hat broke out into song.

"When I read your name out you will sit down on the chair and put the Sorting Hat on your head. You will then be sorted," McGonnagall said once it stopped. "Granger, Hermione."

The girl with the bushy hair went forward. Harry was sure that he was muttering under her breath.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat yelled out moments later.

"Longbottom, Neville."

Harry watched pupil after pupil go up and get sorted. He himself was quite anxious. _What if I'm getting sorted into Hufflepuff?_ he asked himself. _What if I'm in Slytherin? Gryffindor? Raveclaw? What will happen?_

Finally it was his turn. He hadn't given any attention to the others' sorting, so it took him a moment t locate Ginny, Draco and Ronald. Malfoy was at the Slytherin table and the Weasleys at the Gryffindor.

"Potter, Harry," Professor McGonnagall called out.

The hall went quiet. It was nerve-racking knowing that hundreds of eye pairs followed his every step. When he sat down and put the hat on his head he was surprised to a hear a voice inside his head.

_Had an adventurous summer, my boy?_

"Are you alright, Severus?" Albus asked as Severus gave a startled jump. In reply Severus nodded absentmindedly. How was it possible that he could follow Harry's conversation with the hat? Normally no third person could do such a thing.

**Y-yes**, Harry thought back.

_Well, now let's see what we have here. You are intelligent but your stupidity seems to get the better of you most times._

"What is so funny?" the headmaster inquired, looking irritated at his employee. Severus usually never smiled.

"Nothing," the potions teacher replied and Albus shrugged the whole thing off, but he kept watching Severus' face carefully.

**Uh-oh**, Harry replied in his thoughts.

_It would be a waste sending you to Hufflepuff._

**Phew.**

_Ha, I knew you'd say that._

Severus had to try his hardest to keep a straight face.

Albus had enough. "See me in my office after dinner," he said sourly. Severus nodded, biting his lip in order not to stop laughing.

_So, let's see. I do not think you're quite good enough for Ravenclaw, and you don't possess that many traits of Slytherin._

Secretly Severus was disappointed as he had liked it if Harry had become a Slytherin. It was hard enough to treat one of his children with the cruel way he treated non-Slytherins, but both?

**So you'll send me to Gryffindor?**

_Seems like it, does it not? Any objections you want to give me or are you happy with this decision?_

Object, object, object! Severus thought. Go to Slytherin, go to Slytherin!

**Noooo... not really, I guess.**

_Guess or know?_

Harry looked up at the teacher table. Should he object and go to Slytherin or not?

**No**, he said to the hat. **I know. I know that I don't have any objection**. If his some of his friends to suffer Severus' teaching, he'd suffer with them.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat yelled out. The Gryffindors erupted in applause as Harry walked over to their table.

Severs couldn't help but smile. Harry really was Lily's son.

After the last person had been sorted the headmaster stood up to make some announcements.

"Welcome back for another year at Hogwarts," he began. "First of all, I want to remind you older ones and tell our new students that the Forbiden Forest is not called forbidden for no reason. Also, this year the third corridor is also forbidden to be entered for reasons I do not want to explain.

"On a happy note I'm able to tell you that, although there will be the occasional game for entertainment, there will be no Quidditch Cup this year to be given away to one of the houses." He listened to the moans of the students for a moment before he silenced them with a hand gesture. "The reason for that is that in this school year in the months March and April the Triwizard Tournament will be held! Certain students from Beauxbaton and Durmstrang will be staying with us through these months. On March 1 the Goblet of Fire - which will later choose the contestants - will be in the entrance hall ready to receive the entry application for which will consist of your name written on a piece of paper. For safety reasons as many have already died during the Triwizard Tournament I myself will put an age-ring around the goblet, which will only allow students which are of age to go through to the goblet to enter th competition."

"That sucks," Ronald muttered. "I'd love to try it out."

"Better be alive than dead," the girl called Hermione said. "As a first year student you do not have enough knowledge to complete the tasks they expect you to do."

"How d'you know?" Ron challenged.

"Ronald, don't be stupid for once in your life," his brother Percy sneered.

"Additionally I'd like every house to organize something to entertain our guests. You are allowed to ask one teacher for help, but that teacher is not allowed to help any other house. And now, tuck in!" the headmaster said, and the food appeared on the tables, amazing the first years even more.

"Don't you have any manners?" Harry asked Ron, watching him stuff the food into his mouth.

"No, he doesn't," Percy replied. "Mother managed to teach all her children the proper manners except George, Fred and Ronald."

"I'm hungry," Ron defended himself, spraying bits of food all over the table.

"You act as if your parents let you starve at home," Hermione commented.

Ron swallowed his mouthful of potatoes. "None of your business," he gasped, breathin air in as he took another chicken leg and biting hungrily into it he glared at his sister. Ginny, as Harry observed, ate a lot slower and less disgustingly. Percy had been right. She was a better person to hang around with than Ron.

After the food was gone everyone went to their common rooms. Once all the Gryffindors were there Percy started talking.

"You heard what Professor Dumbledore said. We have to organize something to entertain our guests. Any ideas?"

"How about a Quidditch game?" Fred called out.

"Everyone's gonna do that," someone pointed out.

"We need something original, something no one is going to think of, something that involves every house member in one way or another," Percy said encouragingly.

"How about we do a musical?" Ginny spoke up.

"That's it!" Harry yelled, hugging her tight. "I love you!" he exclaimed. "I love you for bringing that up! We can do a play. It'll involve all of us, and I know which teacher we can ask for help. She knows how to act properly which is also going to be a great help."

"So then it's agreed," Percy announced. "We'll do a play. Tomorrow I hang a parchment on the notification board so that everyone can write down any suggestions for plays.

Later that night as he lay in his fourposter bed Harry asked himself if he had done the right thing, going to Gryffindor. Then he remembered the song the hat had sung.

_Oh you may not think me pretty,  
But don't judge on what_ _you see,  
I'll eat myself if you can find_  
_A smarter hat than me.  
You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat  
And I can cap them all.  
There's nothing hidden in your head  
The Sorting Hat can't see,  
So try me on and I will tell you  
Where you ought to be._

_You might belong in Gryffindor,  
Where dwell the brave at heart,  
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry  
Set Gryffindors apart;  
You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,  
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true  
And unafraid of toil;  
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
if you've a ready mind,  
Where those of wit and learning,  
Will always find their kind;  
Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,  
Those cunning folks use any means  
To achieve their ends._

_So put me on! Don't be afraid!  
And don't get in a flap!  
You're in safe hands (though I have none)  
For I'm a Thinking Cap!_

He knew that it didn't matter in what house he was as long as he was happy, and he was.


	38. September, 2

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 38: September, 2

"So, you're gonna wait for me?" Ron inquired as he sat down next to Harry who already was half-way through breakfast. "First we have McGonnagall."

Harry gave him an odd look. "Waing for you would mean being late for the end of the world." Hermione could't help suppress smile, and Ginny too half-smiled. It made Harry happy to see her smile, and it made him happy that _he_ had made her smile appear.

"So, you're in Gryffindor, huh? Just like I predicted."

"Quentin!" Harry exclaimed, turning around to face his adoptive sister.

"So, how do you like Hogwarts so far?" she asked him.

"It's great!" Harry replied, but he didn't come any further.

"Miss Wintergarten, as much as I hate to interrupt your conversation with Mr. Potter, I strongly advice you to go to your own house table," Severus said appearing behind her.

"S-Since when do you look out for Gryfindors?" Ronald stammered, his jaw hanging down. The half-chewed eggs which had been in his mouth fell down onto the plate. Hermione and Ginny turned away in disgust.

Severus looked at him. "Oh, I'm ever so sorry," he said softly. Then his voice hardened. "But I haven't been told that you have the authority to tell someone like me what to do."

"Yeah, a Death Eater," Ron snorted, putting the egg back into his mouth. Harry gritted his teeth and looked down. Quentin looked away. Ginny looked with widened eyes at her brother, and Hermione looked confused.

"Detention, Weasley," Severus snarled as he turned around on his heels and walked away. "Eight o'clock. My office."

Quentin too walked way.

"What?" Ron asked, his mouth full of food, as he noticed Ginny who had explained to Hermione what a Death Eater is, Harry and Hermine glare at him.

Just then the owls entered to bring the morning post. Hedwig settled down in front of Harry who gave her a piece of bacon to eat. He took the parchment from her and read it.

_Hope you read chapters 1-3 in your potion book. I'll hold a little quiz at the beginning of the lesson. S.S._

Harry put it into his school trousers and stood up. "You're coming?" he asked, looking at Ginny and Hermione.

"What 'bout me?"

"I told you earlier," Harry snorted. "I'd never want to miss the end of the world."

As they exited the Great Hall they ran into Lucy.

"Oh, Professor Wintergarten," Harry said, remembering last night. "The headmaster was talking about that every house has to do something to entertain our guests for the Triwizard Tournament, and I wanted to ask you if you would help Gryffindor."

"Yeah," Lucy replied. "No one else has asked me yet, so yes. What do you plan to do?"

Harry's eyes twinkled. "A play, or rather musical."

Lucy smiled broadly. "I'd _love_ to help you."

Harry and the girls left. Just then Quentin walked out of the hall.

"Hey, Mummy," she said. "Glad that I found you. Would you help Ravenclaw for the entertainment for the guests of the Triwizard Tournament?"

Lucy shook her head. "Sorry sweetheart, but I'm already helping Gryffindor."

Quentin eyes darkened. "Harry just asked you, didn't he?"

Her mother nodded.

* * *

Ronald was bewildered when he entered the transfiguration classroom. There was no teacher - only his classmates and a cat sitting on the teacher desk. Where was McGonnagall? Just then the cat sprung down from the desk and, while walking towards him, slowly transformed into Professor McGonnagall.

"Mr. Ronald Weasley," she said. "Would you like it if I transformed you into a map of Hogwarts so that you could find the classroom easier? Or rather a clock so that you're_ on time_ for your lessons."

"N-Neither," Ron stammered, still taken aback from the transformation from the cat to his teacher.

"Then sit down and listen very carefully to what I say, otherwise I'll have to give you detention tonight."

"But I already have detention with Snape!" Ron yelled.

McGonnagal turned back to look at him. "Is that so, yes? Then maybe you'd like to have detention with me for a further week, of course after I sent a letter to your parents describing how you got into trouble even before the school year started properly."

"Well, maybe the next time you should get up with the rest of us," Harry said as Ron sat down in front of him. "Or would you prefer talking with Professor McGonnagall again about that transformation into a clock." Again Ginny smiled at his joke and his heart starting beating faster.

* * *

"What are you reading?" Hermione asked as she sat down at the Gryffindor Table for lunch.

"Potions book," Harry replied. "I have a feeling that Professor Snape will be holding a little quiz at the beginning of the lesson."

"Maybe we all should read through the first few chapters again," Ginny suggested. "Better be safe than sorry. Maybe we can even earn some points for our house."

"Dream on," Percy said as he settled down next to her. "Professor Snape doesn't give points to non-Slytherins, he only takes them away."

"Yeah, but what if you answer his questions all right?" Hermione inquired.

Percy looked at her. "He gives detention for knowingallism."

"Have you checked the list already?" Harry changed the subject. "For the play."

"When I did just before lunch there had only been on suggestion standing on there," he said. He looked at his younger sister who blushed. "And I don't really think there are going to be any more."

"So what suggestion was that?" Hermione asked.

Percy grabbed a bread roll and stood up again. "The Sound of Music."

"I wonder what Professor Wintergarten will say," Hermione said.

"Hey, Quentin!" Harry called as he saw the girl enter the hall. He waved but she ignored him.

After Lunch they had their first potion lesson. Severus held a lengthy speech about what he could teach them if they were good enough. While Hermione, Draco, Ginny and Harry scribbled down every word the other students listened bored.

"Mr. Potter," Severus suddenly said. "What is a bezoar?"

"A stone from the belly of a goat," Harry said without thinking. "It is an antidote to most poisons."

"Lucky guess," Severus said. "Mr. Weasley, what had my speech been about?"

Everyone turned round to face Ron who had his finger in his nose. His head and ears immediately turned tomato-red.

"Fifteen points for not paying attention," Severus said, continuing with his lesson. As the bell rang he set the homework.

"A foot length of parchment on the speech I gave earlier," the teacher told the students. He knew that most of the had not even listened to what he had said. "Mr. Potter, stay behind."

As soon as the last student had left Harry went to Severus' desk.

"Yes?"

Severus looked at him. "This morning I noticed that Quentin received an envelope with the mail."

"Isn't that normal?"

"With Tony's owl. I mean, why would he sent her a letter? They're in the same house. They could talk any time they want."

"So how does that concern me?" Harry asked.

"If I'd ask her she knew instantly that I watched her and she would do anything not to let me know. If _you'd_ask her it might be that she talked too much, like when she accidentally mentioned the Sorting Hat in the holidays to you."

"So... you want me to try and find out what in that envelope is?"

"Yes," Severus said. "And now go or you'll be late for your next lesson."


	39. September, 3

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 39: September, 3

Harry sighed, looking over to the Ravenclaw table. The owls would come any minute. He could see Quentin chatting with some of her classmates. Why was he even doing this? If she would ever find out she'd kill him.

"You've already done the potion assignment?" Hermione asked, sitting down next to him. Her bag was filled to a bursting degree with books and in her arms she carried even more.

"Why do you need all those books?" Harry questioned.

"I got all the books about potions which I could carry," Hermione replied, gasping for air. "Ran here all the way from the library. I didn't take myself time to bring them to my dormitory in case I'd miss the owls. My parents promised that they'd be writing letters everyday, see."

"When do you want to practice the first time?"Lucy asked, appearing behind them.

As no other suggestions for musicals had been written down the Gryffindors had token Ginny's idea to do The Sound of Music.

Harry looked at Hermion. "How about Saturday after lunch?"

"Okay with me," the girl shrugged, biting hungrily into an apple. "We'll have to ask the others first though."

"Tell me when you all discussed it," Lucy said as she continued walking over to the teachers table.

Just then the owls flew in. After some minutes of chaos they settled down in front of the students and teachers. By the time Harry had looked up again to where Quentin had sat she had disappeared from the Great Hall.

"So," Harry said. "Wanna work on that assignment tonight with Ginny?"

"Yeah, sure," Hermione said, giving him ten books. "As long as you help me carry them to the common room. By the way, where is Ginny?"

Harry shrugged. "Haven't seen her yet."

Half an hour later in the History of Magic classroom they saw Ginny.

"Where were you?" Harry asked, sitting down next to her.

"Astronomy Tower," she replied. "Doing stuff."

"What stuff?"

"Don't matter, really."

"If you say so," Harry said as the last student entered.

That night at dinner he couldn't see Ginny anywhere. He was worried that she had skipped two meals that day, so once he finished eating he went to look for her. Maybe she was at the Astronomy Tower.

After asking several older students for the way Harry had reached the tower. Slowly he walked up the staircase. He thought it would never end, but then he emerged into the open and felt the cold wind blowing into his face. After looking for some minutes he found Ginny sitting on the floor in one corner. In her lap she had a sketch pad and in her hand she held a pencil.

"Hey," Harry said.

Ginny jumped up in fright. "Oh, it's just you," she said, relieved. "I thought you were Ron."

"So, you like drawing?" Harry asked.

She shrugged. "Yeah, think so. But I have to be careful because Mum and Dad can't afford to buy me so much paper and pencils, and Ron is always ripping my drawings up saying that I should behave more like the pureblood I am. But I can't help it, I love doing it. If I could I'd love to visit a Muggle Art university when I'm older, one in America..."

"But your parents could never pay, could they?" Harry finished her sentence. Ginny nodded.

"Remember," she suddenly said, looking into his eyes. "Remember two days ago when you said - said that you love me? Was it... was it just to show me how much - how much you appreciate me suggestioning something like that or was it - was it-"

"Real?" Harry asked slowly, swallowing. He shok his head. "No. It wasn't. I cannot fall in love with anyone."

"But - but a life without love, that's terrible!" Ginny exclaimed. "Love is a many splendored thing, love lifts us up where we belong, all you need is love!"

"Please don't-" Harry started, but she cut him off.

"All you need is love," Ginny insisted.

"Love it just a game," Harry snapped.

"I was made for loving you, you were made for loving me," Ginny continued, taking his hands into hers.

"There's no way that I'm going to be loving anyone," Harry replied.

"One night, just give me one night!"

"There's no way I'm giving you one night, and you know it."

"In the name of love," Ginny responded, smiling. "One night in the name of love!"

"You crazy fool, I won't give in to you," Harry said, stepping away from her towards the staircase.

"Don't leave me this way," he was told by the girl as she followed him down the stairs. "Oh, Harry, don't leave me this way."

"You'd have thought that people would have enough of silly romances," Harry said as he walked along the corridor.

"I look around me and see it isn't so, oh no," Ginny said, pointing at two couples standing in the shadows kissing.

"Some people just wanna fill the world with silly love songs," Harry continued as he paused at the top of another staircase.

"Well what's wrong with that? I like to know. Love lifts us up where we belong! Where eagles fly, on a mountain high!" Ginny replied.

"Love makes us act like we are fools. Throw our lives away, for one happy day." Harry cotninued to descent the stairs while Ginny followd him closely.

"You know we should be lovers, and that's a fact," Ginny said, trying once more to get Harry to understand her feelings.

He turned around to face her. "Ginny, just get that I cannot fall in love with anyone." With that he left her.


	40. September, 4

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 39: September, 4

A/N: I got the idea for this story plot when I watched Moulin Rouge, and I take the musical as a bit of a guideline but it's not really going to turn into it, at least not everything.

* * *

"Hey, what's the matter?" Harry asked as he entered the common room after his last lesson. He saw Ginny sitting in an armchair by the the fireplace, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Why didn't you go to lessons today? Professor McGonnagall sent a letter to your parents."

Ginny looked up and without saying another word she got up and walked away to the girls' dormitories.

"I'll talk to her," Hermione said, coming in behind her.

"Fine," Harry muttered, slumping down in the armchair in which Ginny had sat moments earlier. He only hoped she wasn't crying because of last night.

Later on, when Hermione hadn't returned after an hour, he got up again and made his way to the library. If he had to wait he could meanwhile start on his homework. However, he got lost and walke around the castle trying to find his way back to the common room. Then he saw a door. Its handle was in the form of the head of a hawk. He touched it wondering if it would open.

"What came first, the fire or the phoenix?" the handle spoke.

Frightened Harry stumbled backwards and ran away. As he stopped to catch his breath he found himself in front of the library.

"There you are," Hermione said as she exited the library. "I was looking for you everywhere. Where were you?"

Harry shook his head, still shocked. "Don't matter," he said, trying to get his breath back. "Did Ginny talk to you?"

Hermione nodded. "Did you know that she can draw?" she asked excitedly. But then her face darkened. "Ronald ripped her drawings up."

Harry was glad that she hadn't been crying because of the night before, but at the same time he was seething with anger. How dare he tear Ginny's drawings up?

"Do you know where he is?" he asked her.

"Harry, don't do anything stupid!" Hermione yelled. "She wouldn't want you to get into trouble because of her brother. She said so herself."

"Yes, but he can't keep ripping up every drawing she makes," the boy argued.

"Then _talk_ to him, but don't fight."

"You really think someone like Ron would listen to me and do what I tell him?" Harry asked disbelievingly.

"Try it at least," Hermione begged. "We can always tell one of the teachers."

"Yeah, and what will they do?"

"They - they-"

"Hermione, the teachers won't be able to do anything," Harry said. "This is something we have to sort out for ourselves. We have to become independent. We can't just keep going back to the adults for help. We're growing up. Sooner or later we have to start standing on our own two feet."

"Fine," Hermione said, giving in. She sighed. "But let's go back to the common room for now."

Upon their return they found Ginny sitting in the same armchair she had sat in the whole day. When they came over to her she looked up.

"Maybe," she whispered, "maybe I should just stop to draw."

Harry shook his head. "Don't. Don't stop. I'm sure one day you'll be a famous artist, Ginny. To predict the future you have to create it, so don't stop."

She managed a small smile.

"Alright," she whispered. "I'll continue. I'll continue, for you."


	41. September, 5

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 41: September, 5

Harry crouched down behind an armour as Ron, who had stayed after lesson on Professor McGonnagall's request, left the Transfiguration classroom. He didn't look too happy. Harry grinned as he thought about the revenge Ginny would get. As soon as Weasley had turned his back to him Harry flicked his wrist and muttered something under his breath. As he saw how Ronald started to change colours wildly he took off in the opposite direction. After a few minutes he was lost. There wasn't anyone in sight.

"There you are!" Hermione hissed as she appeared next to him with Ginny.

Ginny's eyes were wide with fear. "We're in the corridor on the third floor!" she breathed.

Harry smiled. "Why don't we explore a bit? I mean, what can here be so dangerous that Dumbledore could forbid us to come here?"

"Dumbledore forbid it, Harry!" Hermione shrieked.

"Rules are there to break them," Harry shrugged.

"Filch!" Ginny exclaimed, pointing at a cat sitting next to them. It must have been there quite a while.

"Come," Harry said, hurriedly pulling the girls deeper into the corridor and, if they were caught, deeper into trouble.

As they walked briskly along the corridor trying to find a way to get away the lamps on the wall lightened themselves. Although Mrs. Norris wasn't in sight anymore they could hear the janitor himself coming thundering after them.

"I'm scared," Hermione breathed. "What if we get caught and get expelled?" Harry pressed her hand to comfort her.

"A door!" he said, pointing ahead. Sure enough there was a thick wooden door at the end of the corridor. He let the girls' hands go and sprinted over to the door. "It's locked!" he said in dismay.

"Let me try," Hermione said, pushing him away. She pulled her wand out of her pocket and made a small hand movement while she said, "Alohomora!" With a click the door opened and she pulled it open. Ginny, Harry and Hermione entered. Then they pulled the door closed again.

"Phew," Ginny said, taking a deep breath. "That was close."

"And I still don't see why this corridor is meant to be so dangerous," Harry commented.

"Uhm... maybe you should turn around," Hermione told him quietly. Harry and Ginny turned around to figure out what she meant.

"What the," Harry gasped as he saw an enormous dog face staring into his face. Ginny whimpered as saliva from the dog looking at her dropped onto her uniform. As a third dog face breathed into Hermione's face she screamed and ran out of the room, and the other two followed her.

"I don't have any idea why Dumbledore would keep a giant dog in this school," Hermione said, gasping for breath.

They returned to their common room still shaking from what had just happened. As they entered it they passed a fifth year trying to suppress a smile.

"Harry," Hermione asked. "What did you do to Ron exactly?" He had told them that he'd punish him for what he had done to Ginny, but he hadn't given them any details.

"You'll see," Harry said mysteriously. They all walked over to the fireplace where there was a huge crowd. They pushed their way forwards. In the middle sat Ronald. His whole body including his uniform changed colour minutely. He seemed oblivious to that fact, however he seemed greatly annoyed.

"Can't you just leave me alone?" he yelled.

Hermione and a few others erupted in guffaw as he turned bright pink.

"What's the matter with yo all?" Ronald shouted. Hermione produced a hand mirror out of her school bag and gave it to him. As the boy screamed loudly like a girl she looked at the wall clock.

"Dinner is in half an hour," she remarked. "How long does the spell last."

"Twenty-four hours," Harry laughed, and Ronald fainted.

* * *

A/: School is taking up way too much of my time, so I try to update as often as possible, mostly on weekends though


	42. September, 6

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 42: September, 6

Trying to get his breath back Ronald slumped down at the Gryffindor table next to Harry. His head was tomato-red.

"C-Can't breathe!" he gasped, pouring himself a glass of pumpkin juice.

"You nearly missed Professor Dumbledore's speech," Hermione said angrily. "He had told us to be here at five o'clock sharp!"

"W-what time is it?" Ron asked, breathing more easily.

"Four minutes past five," Harry chuckled.

"As the last student seems to have arrived," Dumbledore said, standing up, "we can begin." He gave Ronald a hard look. In return the boy shrank down in his seat. The headmaster looked at each table. "On my request that each house should think of something to entertain out guests next spring, every single house did think of something, going from obvious things like Quidditch games"- he looked at the Ravenclaw table -"to abnormal things like Magic Shows -" his eyes wandered over to the Slytherins -"and body prop performances -" his eyes set on the Hufflepuffs -"and lastly to musical shows." Finally he looked at the Gryffindor table. Then his eyes wandered from one teacher to the other. "Each house has found a teacher who will help them." He gave Lucy, Severus and Madame Hooch a look. "These teachers asked me if they could use the Great Hall to practice. So I have worked out a timetable saying when which house will be able to pratcice here." He gave Severus, Madame Hooch and Lucy a piece of parchment, keeping one for himself. "Each teacher will give a duplicate of this timetable to the housemembers."

"I object," Severus said, looking thoroughly at the parchment. "You took the best times for yourself, Headmaster."

Albus glared at him. "Does that affect you in any way?" he asked sourly.

"Oh, no," Severus said, smirking. "Not at all. _I_ don't have to play Quidditch at five a.m. and _I_ don't have to act and sing at ten in the evening."

"This is an outrage!" Lucy exclaimed. "The students need their rest! After a day's work you can't possibly expect them to have enough energy left for acting!"

"And at five a.m. the Qudditch players will be too tired to play," Madame Hooch added.

"Students, you are dismissed," Albus called out, but none of the youngsters moved an inch.

"Maybe you just want the Hufflepuffs to be better than everyone else for a change," Severus suggested.

"I made the timetable and you will follow it whether you like it or not," Albus said furiously. "We start tomorrow. Ravenclaws at five a.m., Slytherins after breakfast, Hufflepuffs after lunch and Gryffindors at ten p.m. And now, all leave."

"He can't do this!" Hermione exclaimed as they left the Great Hall. She, Ginny and Harry walked towards the library. There were still two hours left before dinner. "We are all still growing, we need at least ten hours sleep a day!"

"Try telling that to the headmaster," Harry muttered. "I'm sure that he gave the Slytherins one of the better time periods because he knew Sev- Professor Snape would cause some kind of trouble, bu I guess that Lu- I mean Professor Wintergarten is going to do something about this too."

"Why do you keep trying to call the teachers by their first name?" Ginny asked.

Harry shook his head. "Long story," he said.

"Hey Harry," Quentin said, appearing next to him out of nowhere. "We Ravenclaws ar going to protest against this stupid schedule for practicing hours, you Gryffindors wanna join? Mum and Da- Professor Snape already started working on a new timetable with Madame Hooch."

Hermione gave her an intensive look. Then she nodded. "Yeah. Anything to keep this injustice from happening. I'll talk with Percy later."

"Hey, Professor McGonnagall!" Harry called as his Head of House walked by, however she ignored him.

"Seems it hurt her feelings that you chose Mum over her," Quentin chuckled. Harry was irritated that she wasn't angry at him anymore. He would really have to find out for Sevus what she was hiding.

"What for homework do you guys have to do?" Quentin continued to ask.

"Professor Binns, essay on the grounding of Hogwarts," Hermione replied instantly.

Quentin pulled something out of her school bag. "Thought so," she said, pressing a pile of parchments into Harry's hands. "Binns always gives the same homework at the same time." Then she walked away. Harry stared at the spot she had been standing at. Something about her smell was familiar to him.


	43. September, 7

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 43: September, 7

Harry couldn't help thinking about that familiar smell. Where had he smelled it before?Why had it stood out from all the other smells? The whole morning he sat in the Gryffindor common room in an armchair in front of the fireplace thinking. Tony. The envelope. That smell. There was something fishy about all that. In the holidays in Holland, the time when they had visited the mill, Tony and Quentin had seemed to be best friends, but now in school Harry hadn't seen them talking once. There was something behind all that and he swore to find out the truth.

"Are you coming?" Hermione asked as she and Ginny left for lunch. They had been working on their homework in their dormitory after Harry had told he needed time alone.

"No," he replied absentmindedly, shaking his head. "No... I need to think."

"We'll bring you something," Ginny decided. She knew that he wouldn't stop until he got to the bottom of whatever plagued his mind.

"Hmmm," Harry mumbled, closing his eyes in thought. He could hear the portrait of the Fat Lady fall shut. He was alone in the common room.

What had happened in Amsterdam when they had gone there after visiting the mill? He had seen Tony somewhere, but where? Tony was... Suddenly Harry opened his eyes, remembering. Remembering where he had seen that boy.

"No," Harry breathed. "No_._ It can't be!"

* * *

"Okay, guys," Lucy called out once all the Gryfindors had quietened down. "I know this isn't the perfect time to be acting, but we have to make the best from what we have. Professor Snape, Madame Hooch and I have been working on a new schedule for practicing hours but we haven't been able to produce one yet, however it will only be a matter of time until we do so."

"How long does it to make a stupid timetable?" Ronald moaned.

Lucy glared at him. "If you have to make one to which four people with different opinions agree to, a long time Mr. Weasley. Anyway," she continued, turning to face Harry. "You all decided to do _The Sound of Music_?"

"Yes, Professor Wintergarten," Percy said. "However we leave it to you to do the auditioning for the different parts."

"Well, then. By the next time I'll have the script photocopied and then the time after that we can start the auditions," Lucy decided. "I think today we should do some acting exercises to get you all used to performing in front of people."

"What exercises?" Hermione questioned.

"There are many exercises actors are taught to do when they start learning. There are quite a few trust exercises which would be good to try out. How about I show you one? Harry, come here."

Harry walked over to Lucy.

"Close your eyes," she said, taking his hand. "In a minute you'll all be paired off. umber yourselves 1 and 2. Number 1 will lead first. Number 2 will close their eyes like Harry here does, and number 1 will take their hand. Once number 2 is totally relaxed number 1 will start walking around. Number 2 has faith in number 1 that they will not let them bump into anyone else or let them walk into a wall, for if that happens there won't be any trust between number 1 and 2." To demonstrate what she had just said she started to walk slowly around the room, Harry following her movements. A minute later Lucy released him again.

"Find yourself a partner," she called out.

Ginny instantly moved to Harry.

"Sorry," he said, looking apologetically at Hermione. She went to work with the only person without a partner: Percy. Even Ronald had found someone to work with: a First Year boy called Seamus Finnigan.

For about ten minutes they did that exercise, swapping partners each time after number 1 had led number 2 and vice versa.

"Okay, this second exercise involves even more trust," Lucy called out. "It consists of number 2 leaning backwards and number 1 catching number 2." She demonstrated that with Ginny.

"I'm number 1!" Ronald, Harry's current partner, said immediately

Harry shrugged. Even if he fell on the floor it wouldn't cause more than a bruise.

"I'm ready," Harry said once he had tensed up his muscles to be as straight as possible.

"Lean back," Ron ordered.

Slowly Harry let himself fall backwards, expecting Ron to catch him. However, he didn't and Harry fell upon the floor.

"What the hell?" Harry gasped, grimacing in pain. "Why didn't you catch me?"

"Sorry," Ron mumbled, his face and ears as red as ripe cherries. "I noticed my shoe lace was open."

Just as Harry attempted to get up a scrawny Second Year called out, "Out of the way!" and a moment later an obese seventh year boy fell upon Harry who moaned in pain as his arm broke in two with a faint _crack!_.


	44. September, 8

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 44: September, 8

"How the hell did this happen?" Severus yelled, pointing at Harry who lay on the sofa in Lucy's quarters. Madame Pomfrey hadn't liked it but Lucy had talked her into letting Harry stay with her until he was better again. His arm was in a cast, and his head was bandaged. The healer had poured some potions down his throat while Severus had held Harry down.

"Severus, there were thirty-odd pairs," Lucy defended herself. "I couldn't possibly watch everyone at the same time!"

"Could you _please_ stop shouting?" Harry begged. "You're giving me a headache."

"The house elves made some tea," Quentin reported as she came out of the fireplace carrying a tray laden with four cups, a tea pot and a plate filled with biscuits.

"Yes, but letting a boy like George Burchell be the partner of Henry Heather?" her father continued, ignoring her. "George is enormous and Henry is a beanstalk!"

"I told you!" Lucy shouted. "There were so many pairs I couldn't have my eyes on every single on at the same time! I thought they'd be a bit sensible when choosing their partners."

"Apparently they weren't," Severus sneered, looking over at Harry. "Otherwise we wouldn't be in this situation."

"So you're saying that this is all my fault?"

"I'm saying you should have put more thought into what you were going to do," Severus explained.

"Well, what would _you_ have done if you had to do the same thing I had to," Lucy suddenly asked.

Severus looked a bit dumb-folded at her. "Well..." he stammered.

His wife looked triumphantly at him. However, his face brightened up a second later.

"I'd have discussed with them who actually wants to act and who wants to be in charge of the scenery and costumes," Severus smirked. "That way Harry wouldn't be injured right now."

"Out!" Lucy screamed, pointing at the door.

Without taking another look at her Severus turned around on his heels and walked towards the door. He bumped into Quentin, sending her flying on the floor. The cups and pot shattered on the floor around her and the tea was spilled all over her.

"Great," she muttered, trying not to show her pain. The hot tea had burned her left arm, and as she leaned on her hands to get up she started howling in pain. A piece of the broken pot was stuck in her open palm.

"I'll go get Madame Pomfrey," Lucy sighed, throwing floo powder into the fireplace. A moment later she was gone.

Harry knew that if he wanted to talk to Quentin about Tony he should do it now. However, he also knew that this wasn't the right moment. Lucy and the healer could come back any minute.

* * *

A/N: I give you a tip: Harry saw Tony enter a hemp coffee shop.


	45. September, 9

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 45: September, 9

Harry spent the night in Lucy's quarter like Quentin. Madame Pomfrey had healed her hand and had rubbed a creme on her arm to reduce the pain.

In the morning, when Lucy walked out of her bedroom into the living room, she suddenly heard someone singing. She had heard thousands of children sing in her acting career though not many were really good, but that voice was different than any of them.

_"What has happened to it all?  
Crazy, some are saying  
Where is the life that I recognize?  
Gone away_

_But I won't cry for yesterday  
There's an ordinary world  
Somehow I have to find  
And as I try to make my way  
To the ordinary world  
I will learn to survive"_

Lucy felt the goose bumps. She had never before gotten them when she had listened to a child singing. Suddenly the singing ended, and Lucy heard the noises of a shower. However they too ended, and a moment later Harry exited the bedroom, a towel around his waist and wet hair clinging to his head.

"What?" he asked as he saw Lucy staring at him.

* * *

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as Harry entered the Gryffindor common room. "We were so worried about you, especially as we heard that you had a concussion."

Harry smiled. "It wasn't too bad, actually. Madame Pomfrey rescued me from the bandaged head this morning, but the cast won't come off until Wednesday."

"Harry!" Percy said, pushing the girl out of the way. "We had a House Discussion yesterday, and we came to the conclusion that it's too dangerous to do the musical."

"Dangerous?" Harry exclaimed irritated.

"You could have been killed," Ron's older brother stated. "George weighs 99.5kg, you're lucky only your arm broke. Also, we decided to ask Professor McGonnagall's for help instead of Professor Wintergarten."

"You can't do that!" Harry said angrily. "It's not her fault that George fell on me, is it?"

"As a matter of fact, she was responsible for us all at that time," Percy told him. "So yes, it is her fault."

Harry glared before he turned around and opened the Fat Lady.

He ran along the corridors, trying to keep the tears at bay. It wasn't Lucy's fault. It couldn't be.

By the time he reached the Astronomy Tower he was exhausted, and it took him a long time until he reached the top of the staircase.

The cold air hit him in the face like a hard slap. It was windy. He wasn't wearing anything else except jeans and a sweat-shirt, making him shiver. He stepped over to the banister and looked down. He swallowed. It was a long way down. Then he looked at the sky.

"One day I'll fly away too," Harry whispered, watching an owl fly over the Forbidden Forest away from the castle. "Fly away from this unfair world."

"Hey Harry," a voice behind him said.

"G-Ginny!" he exclaimed frightened, turning around. "Whoa - you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"I - I'm sorry," the girl replied, blushing deeply.

Harry looked into her eyes. He saw something in them that he definitely didn't like.

"Maybe..." she whispered. "Maybe if you would-"

"One day I'll leave all this to yesterday," Harry continued, giving her a hard look. "There's no more love can do for me. Why should your love be different? Why live life from dream to dream and dread the day when dreaming ends? If I were you, Ginny, I'd stop dreaming of this now. It'll hurt less."

"You don't understand!" Ginny yelled in dismay. "I _can't_ stop dreaming! I love you too much!"

"Then stop! Stop loving me!"

"You just can't stop loving someone from one moment to another," Ginevra argued.

"Then - then we should stop spending time together."

"We have every class together!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Just pretend that you hate me," Harry said annoyed as he left the tower. "That will solve everything."

"It won't solve anything," Ginny whispered as she watched him, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "I love you too much to pretend to hate you. I tell you, it won't be solving anything."


	46. September, 10

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 46: September, 10

Harry wasn't in the mood for lessons, but he'd never dare to even think about bunking. That morning something bad had happened. While he'd been sitting at the Gryffindor table eating his breakfast Quentin had approached him. She'd sat down next to him, not saying a word.

"What's the matter?" Harry had asked her.

"Mum," Quentin had whispered, trying not to burst out in tears. "Mummy left Hogwarts."

They had gone to Lucy's qaurter, just in time to see Severus arrive back from the manor through the floo.

"She isn't at home," he had told them, staring at the floor.

After a while of silence he had told them to go to their lessons and to continue as if nothing had happened.

As soon as his last lesson was over Harry went to the dungeons to Severus' quarters. He didn't want to go to the Gryffindor common room just now. At lunch he hadn't eaten much, just like Quentin.

Harry knocked on the door leading to the potion master's room and a moment later it opened. Severus let him in without saying a word. Quentin was on the sofa in the living room, silent tears falling down her cheeks. As she saw Harry she sprung up and walked to the bathroom.

"I know what was in that envelope," Harry muttered. Severus gave him an irritated look. "That envelope she received, remember? You told me to find out."

"And?" Severus asked, slumping down on the sofa. He sighed.

"Hemp."

"What?!" Severus stood on his feet, looking alarmed at Harry.

"She got it from Tony," he continued.

"I knew that boy was up to no good," Severus said, gritting his teeth.

Just then the bathroom door opened and Quentin came out again.

"Harry told me," her father said to her, giving her a hard look.

"Told you what?"

"About Tony."

Quentin gasped. "How did you- ?"

"The better question is how _could you_?" Severus shouted. "You know very well that I don't approve of it!"

"Why does it even matter to you?" his daughter yelled, tears filling her eyes. "You hardly ever spend time with me, so why should I listen to you?"

Severus raised his hand, and Harry knew that he was going to slap her. Quentin turned away, her arms over her head.

"She was just curious," he said loudly, and the other two looked at him. "She told me herself. Quentin told me that she's curious and likes to find out things by herself."

Severus looked from Harry to Quentin. Without saying another word he disappeared into his office.

Quentin collapsed on the floor, sobbing heavily.

"I can't believe he just- he just tried to slap me," she said, her voice still shaking with fear.

Harry hugged her tightly, wishing he hadn't said anything to Severus.

They sat like that for a few moments until Quentin started to calm down again.

"Mum," she whispered after a while, "Mummy - she went to act in her movie although she said she wouldn't."

* * *

"Hey, you wanna play chess?" Ronald asked as he saw Harry entering the Gryffindor common room. Harry just stared at him and then walked away.

"Whatever's the matter with him?" the red-haired boy muttered.

"It's not him, it's you," Ginny replied as she walked past him. "No one would want to even spend time with you."


	47. September, 11

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 47: September, 11

"You know," Quentin said, looking above the Forbidden Forest, "sometimes I don't know if it's worth it. Trying to become a fashion designer I mean." She and Harry were on the Astronomy Tower watching the sunset.

"Don't," Harry told her. "If you give up your dream a part of you dies."

"Yes, but think about yesterday. Daddy - he nearly slapped me."

"Because you were smoking hemp. He just over reacted. Anyway, I'm sure that it hurt him more than you think that Lucy suddenly left Hogwarts."

"I know how she felt," Quentin muttered. "Everyone blamed her when you broke your arm. It was just too much to take anymore, just like it was too much for me to have double potions today."

"You skipped potions?" Harry exclaimed.

"Sure. Daddy probably doesn't want to see me again anyways."

"Of course he does! You're his daughter, Quentin."

"But I disappointed him!" she cried. "I never ever before did that, Harry."

"There's always a first time," Harry smiled. In return he got an evil look.

"Look," he said. "Didn't you tell me on the way back from Holland that the sunset symbolizes the end of everything to you? Let it be the end of this big mess."

"Thanks for trying," Quentin said, giving him a quick hug. "I need to get my homework for tomorrow finished. See you later, Harry." A moment later she disappeared.

* * *

Albus sat in his office, thinking. He needed a new Muggle Studies Professor. He had to talk to Severus about Lucy. Furthermore had to talk to Quintella Wintergarten/ Snape and Tony Brown about the drug incident Severus had told him about. Then he had to send Hagrid to Gringotts to empty his vault as his friend had decided it was too dangerous to keep the only thing that could help him stay alive in Diagon Alley where anyone could steal it. Additionally Minerva had talked to him about taking over the Gryffindors' surprise for the Triwizard Tournament. On top of all he had to try and think of a way to get Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley closer. This was going to be a busy week.

* * *

A/N: My laptop broke down, so please excuse the lateness of the chapters as I have trouble accessing the internet


	48. September 12

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 48: September, 12

Ginny walked towards Hermione and Harry who sat somewhere in the middle of the Gryffindor house table, but as Harry glared at her she swallowed and walked away again. Morning lessons were going to start in half an hour.

"What's the matter?" Hermione asked. "You two had an argument?"

Harry shook his head. "I told her it'd be best if we stop spending time with each other."

"How could you?" Hermione exclaimed, jumping up. She took her things and walked away over to where Ginny was sitting, next to Neville Longbottom who seemed to have received a parcel from his grandmother. A moment later Ron sat down where she had sat, piling fried eggs onto his plate.

"How're you?" he asked with a full mouth.

"I was better," Harry sighed, wondering if he should befriend Weasley or not. After all the friendship did not have to last an eternity, so maybe it was a try worth.

* * *

"Come on, we've got potions," Harry said as they walked out of the Great Hall after lunch. During the morning lessons they had gotten to know each other a bit more.

"Potions is crap," Ronald moaned in reply. "Let's just bunk."

"But -"

"Don't be such a wimp," Ron said harshly. "School's a waste of time. Who needs it anyways?"

"Harry," Hermione said, approaching them. "If you bunk I'll tell Professor Snape. Please come with me to lesson."

"Don't be daft," Ron said encouragingly. "What's he gonna do? Get you expelled?"

"He might very well do so," Ginny said as she joined them.

"Shut your stupid hole!" Ron roared, pulling Harry away in the direction of the Gryffindor common room.

"What are we going to tell him?" Hermione sighed. "Professor Snape I mean. After all Harry didn't say that he _would_ be going with Ron who pulled him away against his will, right?"

Ginny shook her head. "He'd have gone with him anyways, Hermione. He could have resisted against my brother, broken away, but he didn't. He needs to learn his lesson."

* * *

Harry glared at Ron who sat in one of the armchairs in the Gryffindor common room, deeply asleep. First he'd dragged him here, said it was a waste of time to get a head start on their homework, didn't allow him to go to any afternoon classes and now he had fallen sleep. Soon the last lesson would be over and Hermione would probably come and tell him that Severus wanted to see him, then she'd leave him again. Ginny wouldn't even exchange a word with him, Harry knew that. He slumped down on another armchair and sighed heavily. Why had life to be so difficult? He had only been at Hogwarts for less than two weeks but already too much had happened for his taste. All he wanted was to have a quiet life, but somehow that was never to come true, not as long as he stayed here. But where else would he go? Maybe he should go and talk to Severus about what happened.

A moment later the door to the Gryffindor common room opened and the first Gryffindors came in, Hermione too.

"He seemed to ignore the fact that you bunked," she said as she walked past him.

Harry sighed again. Lucy's sudden leave really must have affected him.

"And don't forget," Hermione called. "We have our first flying lessons in an hour!"

* * *

As Harry and Ron made their way out of the castle they saw Draco and Quentin standing near the entrance door whispering.

"And don't forget," Quentin said as the boy approached them, turning away. "You have to do everything I told you!"

"Yeh, I will," Draco muttered, glaring at Weasley and nodding at Harry as the boys walked past.

Minutes later the Slytherin and Gryffindor first years stood in the Quidditch pitch, listening to Madam Hooch. After she finished her speech she said, "And now stand beside your broom, hold your hand flat above it and call 'Up!', and let it fly into your hand." The students did as she bid them, and the only ones who succeeded straight away were Harry and Draco. After a few attempts Ronald's broom shot up, missed his hand and hit him straight into the face. The Slytherins started sniggering and even Harry couldn't suppress a grin.

After some trouble very student managed to get the broom lying beside them into their hands.

"Mount them and kick off the ground at the sound of my whistle!" Madam Hooch called. "One, Two-" Before she got the chance to say three and blow her whistle Neville kicked off, nervously, and gained height faster than he could react to stop the broom.

"Stop!" Hooch shrieked. "Stop! Come down again!"

"I- I can't," Neville shouted back, stammering nervously. Somehow he managed to steer the broom towards one of the towers, fly around it and then come back towards the rest of the class. However, as he reached the bottom of the roof his cloak got caught on one of the roof tiles. The broom continued its way to the ground, leaving the boy to hang there. Neville's robe wasn't able to hold his weight though and so it started to tear, and a moment later he fell onto the hard ground of the Quidditch pitch, screaming in pain as there was a faint _crack! _and his arm broke beneath his body.

"Out of the way!" the teacher yelled, making her way past the students to where Neville had landed. She helped him up and then started walking towards the castle.

"Don't any of you dare to even mount those brooms," she snapped, Neville beside her sobbing. However, as soon as she was out of sight Malfoy exclaimed, "Look! What's this?" He picked something up from the ground.

"Give it back!" Hermione shouted, trying to grab the small crystal ball which was in his hand. "Neville got it from his grandmother this morning!"

Without a second thought Malfoy mounted his broom and shot up into the air. "Come and get it!"

Sensing that this was his chance to rebuild his friendship with Hermione Harry too mounted his broom.

"Harry! Madame Hooch said we shouldn't!" Hermione shouted as he kicked off the ground.

"Don't worry about me," Harry said carelessly as he slowly gained on height. None of her attempts to get him down onto the ground helped, and seconds later she was out of hearing distance. He followed Draco who was flying ten foot ahead of him. Suddenly he came to an abrupt stop, and Harry had just enough time to stop as well in order not to crash into the Slytherin.

"Want it?" Malfoy asked, holding his hand in which the ball was high in the air. He grinned. "Catch it!" He threw the round object with a sudden movement towards the castle, and Harry, without thinking, flew after it, gaining on speed with every second. Just before the ball hit one of the windows in one of the towers he managed to catch it, swinging his broom gracefully to avoid the piece of glass as well. He didn't know what that ball was, but he had caught it, and so he had hopefully caught Hermione's friendship again.

* * *

"... and also you can do whatever you like," the headmaster continued, looking at Minerva. "You do not have to do the musical if you don't want to."

"Of course," McGonnagall said, nodding understandingly. Then she smiled. "I'm glad my house rethought their decision of taking Professor Wintergarten as their help, especially after what happened to young Mr. Harry Potter."

"Yes," Dumbledore sighed. "When I employed her I never thought something like that would happen under her eyes, but it seems that I was wrong."

"Well, anyways," the transfiguration teacher said, standing up. "I'd better get going, I have some homework left to mark." She looked out of the window a last time before she left, however what she saw nearly gave her a heart attack.

"Whatever is the matter?" Albus questioned, following her stare. He just made out a hand reaching for something, then there was a weird object which looked similar to the back end of a broom, and only after a few minutes he figured out that that was Harry Potter sitting on a broom, that it had been Harry Potter who had nearly crashed through the window into his office.

"Albus!" Minerva shrieked as the headmaster fainted, hitting his head on the corner of his desk. However, she had to admit that the young boy had managed to catch whatever there had been flying towards the window, and that was a skill she needed for the seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

* * *

A/N: Hope you like it. A cold has plagued me for the last few days and my laptop still isn't repaired, so this is at the moment the best I could do.


	49. September, 13

A year in the life of Harry Potter

Chapter 49: September, 13

"Quentin, that's not fair!" Draco howled. "I did what you told me to do, so you should give me my payment!"

"I never told you to break his arm," Quentin snapped angrily, ready to walk away from the entrance hall. Draco however had other plans and grabbed her shirt sleeve.

"Ole McGonnagall wants Harry to be in the Quidditch team, that's what you asked me for, right? It's not my fault that Longbottom broke his arm when he fell, is it?"

"You could have done something!" Quentin shouted.

"Shut up or someone will hear you," Draco pleaded.

"Fine," the girl gave in. "You did what you were supposed to do, but because of what happened to that Gryffindor boy I only give you half." Draco opened his mouth to argue but she continued, "Either half or nothing." Grudgingly Malfoy accepted the small bag of galleons she gave him. He let go of her sleeve; a second later she disappeared into the darkness.

Quentin had never been afraid of the darkness. It was quite the opposite in fact: she loved the mysterious night while all the other girls in her year group loathed the frightening blackness which gave the feeling of unknowing what was going to await you around the next corner. She took a shortcut to the Ravenclaw common room to avoid any teacher who would be wandering the halls at that time of night. It had been dangerous to meet Draco at that time and place, but he had insisted on it saying that during the day it would be even harder.

Just as she reached the door leading to the common room she heard a voice behind her.

"Hello, darling."

Scared she turned around. A tall figure stepped out of the shadows cast upon the floor by the walls, and as the moon light shining in from a nearby window met its face, she knew who it was.

"Tony, it's you," Quentin said, sighing in relief. "I already thought -"

"Thought what?" the boy inquired.

She shook her head. "Nothing. Anyway, what are you doing out here?"

"I could ask you the same question," he purred, "but I won't. Rather I'm here for the payment."

"Payment?" Quentin asked bewildered. "What payment?"

"You know," he said, stepping towards her. "The hemp. I risked a lot getting it, so I should think you owe me big."

The position she was in made Quentin feel uneasy. Tony was a lot stronger than her, and above all there wasn't anyone there to help her.

"You said it was free," she said, trying not to make him hear her fear. She had never been particularly afraid of boys, but this was something different.

"Did I?" Tony said, grabbing her arm and forcing her back against the nearest wall.

"Get off!" Quentin screamed, but the noise was muffled by Tony who forced a kiss on her lips, pressing his body against her.

Tony grabbed Quentin's thigh with one hand and dug his thump in hard. She was more than determined not to give him any satisfaction by showing how much it hurt. She would give anything for the sound of approaching foot steps for that would mean that Tony would have to retreat. However, there'd be a next time and a next time, until he got what he wanted. She knew that.

As Quentin stopped struggling Tony clutched her bum and started kissing her again. A moment later however, as he was leaning back, she brought her open palm up and smashed it against his forehead, missing his vein by centimeters.

"Bitch!" he exclaimed, stumbling backwards. Knowing that she only had a few seconds she held her wand up to her throat and started screaming.

* * *

Severus never really liked having to wander around the castle at two a.m. looking for students who had sneaked out of their dorms, but he knew someone had to and today he appreciated the fact that he could wander around the empty corridors lost deep in his thoughts. Harry had come to him before dinner yesterday evening apologizing for having skipped numerous lessons, and then telling him that Professor McGonnagall wanted him to be the seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

Was it wise to let him? Already one child of his was lost to Quidditch, and in the year Quentin had first played she had broken more bones then ever before in her life. The position of the seeker was even more dangerous, he knew. With what injuries would Harry get away? Broken bones, of course. So much was clear. Bu what would happen if he didn't give in? The whole house of Gryffindor including Professor McGonnagall would be out to kill him for sure.

Just as he was on his way past the library he heard a scream, its sound more than familiar to him. After the huge tantrum Quentin had thrown when he wouldn't let her be part of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team he would recognize her scream from anywhere.

If his ears weren't tricking him the scream had come from the Ravenclaw common room. What was happening? Minutes later he found out.

"Quentin!" he gasped, seeing his daughter lying on the floor in front of the common room door, sobbing. Curious Ravenclaws watched what was happening through the open door. "Get back to bed," Severus snapped, and, frightened, they disappeared. He crouched down next to the girl.

"Daddy!" Quentin cried, flinging her arms around Severus' neck. "Oh, Daddy!"

Severus stood up again and scooped her up. The Ravenclaws had appeared again, but he didn't care. Other students and Professors came to see what had happened. The scream had echoed through the whole castle, waking up every single of its inhabitants.

"Daddy!" Quentin continued to cry as her father carried her through the crowds, past the students who came towards them, until finally they were in his quarters. By then her cries had decreased to an occasional mutter, her sobs had subdued to heavy breathing and her blood-shot eyes were closed tightly.

As he put her on the sofa he noticed that she had fallen asleep. The explanation of whatever had happened would have to wait until later.


End file.
